OpinionatedThinker

Firewalk... of coals and brimstones!

2009-09-21T06:49:00.000-07:00

You know what? I forgot I had a blog. I've completely and utterly shelved the whole blog thing for the longest of time. It wasn't until I was looking through some of my friends' profiles on Facebook that I realised the blog icon and was reminded of my blog rotting away at this site. Poor blog... (*Pet Pet Stroke Stroke).

Anyways, what has been happening in my life for the past 3-4 months when I was away? Well, nothing much actually. I just Fire-walked. Muahahaha!

Hahaha. Not like this, of course!

A bit more like this. Not as ganas but still enough to scare the living daylights out of you.

I didn't manage to take any pictures so I know, ... it's quite hard to believe. You've got to take me for my word on this one. Honestly... (ok, this is me being brutally and painfully honest) I was freaking out. The last thing on my mind was taking a pic. I had to walk on fire; my life is at stake here, please understand.

However, I realised that it's all in the mind. The way to firewalk is the same as taking the jumper at the crucial minute or when you're running down the open lane on the court and the outcome of the game is in your hands. It's you having the total confidence that you'll nail it and that it's not beyond you.

After doing the whole firewalk thing, I was like 'bring 'em on... I can do anything!' It lasted for like two days afterwhich I headed back to the books to make sense of the whole experience. Physics shows that it is humanly possible to firewalk. It's all about specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity.

Water (main composition in our foot) has a very high specific heat capacity compared to coal, thus making it more difficult to change temperatures, making it more difficult for our feet to get really hot!

Water also has a high thermal conductivity compared to coal. The blood is able to conduct heat, carry and spread the heat all around so you don't feel the intense burning, hot feeling.

There you have it! I just explained the science of firewalking to you in a nutshell. However, please use discretion in any attempts. Do so under skilled supervision. There are dangers to it and they are REAL. This is fire and coals we are talking about; 500 Degrees Celsius is no joke. I did it with Anthony Robbins, you should do it with someone who can guide and help you through the whole process.

It's all about overcoming your fears! That's the biggest lesson I learned from this experience. Fears are meant to be overcome!

ART

2009-05-05T21:54:00.000-07:00

Recently, I picked up drawing. Why? It all started with a thought. If I couldn't and wasn't a natural in holding a note, doing sports or playing an intsrument when I was kid, how is it that I was able to learn and do it now? If I could learn up all these things, why is it that I can't do the same for art?

Flashback Primary 1: I'm in art period. Teacher walks in and asked us to draw an aeroplane. I drew a mutant plane with no wings or rather with wings that don't look like wings of an aeroplane.

The girl next to me seems to know how. I tried to take a peek. What happened next changed everything forever. The teacher reprimanded me for copying. I had to be silent and finish up my drawing... drawing something I didn't know how to draw. I hated the feeling because the end product became a laughing stock among my friends. What's worst? They stuck the painting up at the back of the class for a whole 2 weeks to my horror of horrors. I had to look at that painting and be reminded of what a hopeless artist I was. I decided that I'm no good at art.

Many of you probably went through what I went through. I realised that I didn't have somebody I could model after and learn from. It's a matter of learning HOW to do it. So I decided to give drawing another go. This time I copied. I copied books, I watched and learned from Aimei.

Guess what? I am heading somewhere with my art. I'm improving. What I'm about to post is a quantum leap for me (a person who can't even draw a stick man properly... hahaha)!

I know that the eyes look a little weird but this is me trying to draw Aimei.

And this is me trying to draw different smiley faces!

So here goes my journey in trying to do something new! I am excited. Learn something new. Life's a journey, live life and enjoy life!

Japanese Freestyle Football @ Cineleisure

2009-04-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

I was at Cineleisure the other day, enjoying my Very Vanilla Chiller without Espresso when suddenly, out of the blue, three Jap guys with funky hairdo came on the scene and started doing football tricks with some tv coverage! The culprit: PUMA! They brought down some street soccer guys with their own samba drummer to perform as a promo for their range of products. Their tricks were awesome. My brother and I were very impressed by the level of skill they possessed.

Fitness Edition: Women's Fitness

2009-04-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

Today's fitness edition is not going to be concerning me or the latest training regime I'm on. Due to popular demand, this fitness edition is going to be dedicated to women!

I am so tempted to go on a verbal diarrhea and pour everything out in one post but I doubt that it's going to be of any help so I have decided to give a general guideline and as the questions pour in, I'll try to answer you and give a more specific guideline.

I am no expert but this will help you get started. Whatever you do, always go for a medical checkup and test with a doctor or certified trainer first and he will highlight to you any medical issues that may hinder your training.

Let's get started:

First of all, I think that the trend now is that women should be curvy and not flimsy (think in terms of Jessica Biel in Blade Trinity and Jennifer Garner in Elektra).

In order to move towards looking like that, there's a basic guideline you must follow:

#1: Weight training for toning

#2: Cardio

#3: Diet

#1: Weight training

Contrary to popular belief that if a woman trains, she's going to end up looking like Arnold from Terminator, weight training actually helps you tone up by working your different muscle groups. Why won't you end up like Mr. Terminator himself? It's simply because testosterone is responsible for boosting muscle development and although both men and women produce testosterone, the amount produced in guys is up to 60 times more. Now you know why!

Start with these combinations:

Chest/Back: Chest press, Lats pulldown and seated row
Legs: Leg extensions, leg press, lunges
Shoulders/biceps/triceps: Shoulder press, bicep curls, tricep extension

Start simple and go slow; the momentum will build in no time.

#2: Cardio

You don't need to hit the gym for this one. Just run for around 30-40 mins around the neighborhood 2-3 times a week and you'll be fine. If running is not your thing, try swimming or cycling. Put on some music on your ipod and you'll enjoy this 40 mins.

#3: Diet

No supper (yup... this is the first one I want to highlight... hahaha). If you're really starving, eat something whole grain.
Eat a full, healthy breakfast - wholemeal bread sandwiches, whey protein with oatmeal, egg sandwiches

Eat 4-6 times a day and break it down to smaller portions

Get rid of junk food - Maggi mee is junk food. Allow only one day in a week to pamper yourself (moderately ok?). Also, one day doesn't mean 24 hrs, it means like for one or two meals, that's it.

Eat fruits and vegetables. I struggle with vegetables so I consume up to 10 apples a week. Not the best option but still acceptable.

Drink lots of water

Ultimately, you're training not just for aesthetic purposes but for your health and well-being. What you sow, is what you will reap 10-20 years from now. With that in mind, exercise!

Space

2009-04-07T09:50:00.000-07:00

Recently, I have been reading up some articles on space exploration and the commercialization of such efforts for civilians, such as us, to enjoy at a "reasonable" price. This means that you can now go to space for a holiday, get a spectacular view of the earth off the atmosphere and go weightless for like 5 minutes before the spacecraft re-enters the atmosphere for just US $200,000. It sounds fun to me... a fun 5 minutes! It'll probably go down as the most expensive 5 mins of your life!

Virgin Galactic has partnered with Spaceport America, New Mexico for this holiday of the future. I thought it is pretty amazing to be able to go to space for holidays... totally out of this world... hahaha, pun intended!

How does it work? You will most probably get into a Virgin Galactic spaceship called WhiteKnightTwo (just completed its recent test run successfully) and will take off from a track runway in the NewMexico desert, not far from Roswell (remember that alien show on tv?...).

It will go up to 110km above ground level and will go beyond the Karman line where space is said to begin. Once you're past it, you'll float, go weightless and have a breathtaking view of the earth for several minutes.

Then you're back in the atmosphere.

Some are sending their wedding rings into space and back to give it a sense of novelty. Another company which brews beer sends yeast into space and back to brew its blend of 'spacebeer'.

One thing's for sure, space is the new holiday destination and with businesses like this, the universe is the limit!

Fitness Edition: I-Robot

2009-04-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Every once in a blue moon, I post about health and fitness. Today is such a day! Recently, I discovered some interesting facts on how to look like Will Smith on I-Robot and I thought that it'll be great to share them with my readers.

First things first... the picture:

Why Will Smith? Apart from the striking resemblance (hahaha... I wish), we have similiar metabolism rates... that means it's super high.

During an interview, Will Smith was quoted saying, “I have a much easier time losing weight (for I am Legend) than putting weight on. Ali was fifty times harder trying to put weight on than to drop.” This quote was highly encouraging! If Will can do it, I can do it!

He had to put on the same kind of muscle mass and bulk up like he did for Ali which means lifting heavier weights. His bench press that year went from 175 lb to 365 lb. He went on a 5 day a week training schedule with a focus on 1-2 body parts each session. He also ran 5 miles a day. *Sweats.

Not only that, to get the ripped and defined look, he had to bring down his body fat % to below 10%. He was at 7.5% in I-Robot, to be exact! How did he do it? He slowly cut his calories and flushed out all the junk food from his daily diet. It's definitely not an easy task but possible nonetheless!

Motto: If Will can do it, I will do it! (That's so cheesy... hahaha!) Anyways, I'm just encouraging myself. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do!

You know what? I just got an idea. Maybe I should post on women's fitness the next time around! It'll be good to share some fitness tips with the female readers, right? Let's see how the response is like!

Climate Change

2009-03-23T09:51:00.000-07:00

Let us talk about climate change!

You read on the carbon cycle and the water cycle in school... and wonder what has it got to do with you...?

Let me tell you what has it got to do with you... It has everything to do with the environment and the earth that you live in.

Climate change is something real and not just theory in a textbook you read when you were in secondary school!

What's happening?

Sea level is increasing worldwide with an increase of 12-22cm in this century. If things continue without any effort from our part, sea levels are estimated to increase by 48-79 cm or 0.48-0.79 m.

What does that mean? (Speak English, Dev)

Well, for one, you won't be seeing this guy anymore...!

Yeah... you got it right! Polar bears are already endangered. If things don't change, you won't be seeing this chap anymore. That means, no more National Geographic shots of polar bears, no more soft toys and a lot of explaining to do to the next generation! Let's just save us the hassle ok!

Who cares about Polar bears?

Well, you have a point (not a very correct one though...) so let me bring it back home. According to a WWF (this has nothing to do with wrestling... go figure) report released on September 2007, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei will face consequences due to climate change. To list a few:

Extreme weather events associated with El- Niño to be more
frequent and intense

Increase in hot days and warm nights and decrease in cold days and
nights (True right? Don't need to be a rocket scientist to feel this)

Projected sea-level rise is very likely to result in significant losses of coastal ecosystems and a million or so people along the coasts will likely be at risk from flooding (high confidence)

Coral bleaching

Further declines in mangroves forests and their biodiversity (Please... I'd love to enjoy the mangroves in Malaysia for many more years to come!)

Heat wave (Imagine people fainting everywhere... not a very pretty sight)

Increasing intensity and spread of forest fires (I hate the masks we use when there's haze... Can we not go down this path?)

8. The annual cost of protecting Singapore’s coast is estimated to be between US$0.3 and $5.7 million by 2050 and between US$0.9 and $16.8 million by 2100. It is going to cost us more year after year to upkeep our coasts.

What can you do?

I admit that the task looks a little daunting but we can start somewhere. A journey always begin with a small step! You can do something by joining Earth Hour this Sat, 28 Mar, 8.30pm by turning off your lights for an hour. A small step? Yes, it is... but at least we're heading somewhere in the journey to save our planet!

Light bulbs and Earth

2009-03-19T10:37:00.000-07:00

Jan 27, 1880 was a historical day when Edison's incandescent light bulb was patented. His efforts in 1879 paid off with the first commercially practical light bulb.

Things were never the same after that! Well, things progressed so fast that by now, 49 years after his invention, the world’s population consumes 15 terawatts of power[source: The Economist]. Just how much power is 15 terawatts? Let's make life easier and think of it in terms of watts.

All of us are familiar with Edison's light bulb and these light bulbs consume about 100 watts.

1 Terawatt = 10 billion x 100 watt light bulbs

= 1,000,000,000,000 watts

That is a lot of energy consumed! Malaysia is ranked #31 in the world with 95,980,000,000 kWh while the smaller city-state of Singapore comes in #57 with 35,920,000,000 kWh.

Now, it's pointless to blame Edison for this. Give the man a break. He's dead and if it weren't for him, we would have been worse off. What can we do then?

On 28 Mar 2009, we can get involved in Earth Hour 2009! At 8.30pm, just turn off your lights for an hour to show society and the rest of the world that we can do something about climate change and our environment!

We got to come to a place that we start taking responsibility for this earth that we're living in, Join the Earth Hour 2009 project together with me and turn off the lights fort an hour!

We can change the world we're living in! Join me!

Dev is back... back for good!

2009-03-14T08:41:00.000-07:00

Anybody there...? (*The Opinionated Thinker sheepishly makes his entrance). I know that by now you would probably feel like throwing rotten tomatoes at me... I understand how you feel! So I've decided to provide you, my readers with virtual rotten tomatoes that you can throw at me. (*Squish... there goes one).

So here goes... I'M SORRY for going M.I.A. on so many of you for so long! I've repented, changed my ways and now, I'm back, stronger than ever!

What changed my heart? Well, if it was not for a dear reader and friend (who refused to be named...) who chided me on my absence from blogging, I'd still be in the dark.

I have been very busy since CNY. I have a lot of things to write; just never really got to it! Now here's the dilemma... where do I start? Let's do South Africa first... Part 1.

This is the view outside the hotel we were staying at. Great view of the Nelson Mandela Square.

Being the Malaysian that I was (the generation that didn't need to go through NS and hold a gun, this was a great experience! My enthusiasm caused the owner to take a few shots of me with the gun. It's legal to carry arms in South Africa.

Seth and Jimmy, my Singaporean colleagues offered their NS guns to me... hahaha!

Nelson Mandela... love this guy! The funny thing was I was actually in the midst of reading his book, 'Long Walk to Freedom' when I was called to South Africa. It was like seeing the book come alive as I walked the streets of JoBurg.

Bananas are actually called Piesangs there... hahaha. For those of you who are wondering what's the joke... Banana in Malay is actually 'Pisang'.

My favourite restaurant in JoBurg. Why?

The steak is the bomb!

You get to choose how much beef you want to consume, I went for 480g.

Seth in action. He's the real deal when it comes to photography and media!

I went there for lunch again... hahaha!

Why am I not surprised that we managed to get this shot on camera. This guy ate 1/2 kg of beef, man!

Anyways, I'm distracted! Can I just interupt myself and say that "Liverpool rox my sox"!

After trashing Real Madrid 4-0, they came back and humiliated Man Utd 4-1 in front of their own crowd at Old Trafford!

Gerrard delivering at the spot!

Torres was amazing.. scoring the opener and assisting Gerrard in the 2nd leaving Evra without any option but to hack Gerrard down in the box!

There... I've let it off my chest! It's going to be a great night's sleep!

Xin Nian Kuai Le

2009-01-22T19:32:00.000-08:00

Bakkwa mania is here! Xin nian kuai le everybody!I know it may sound a little weird that I'm into the whole Chinese New Year thingy but it's true, I'm into the whole CNY thingy. Growing up in a chinese town with chinese friends since childhood has caused me to appreciate this festival deeply.

What do I appreciate the most about Chinese New Year?

BAKKWA (ROU GAN)

This is the chinese pork jerky... yum yum! Sinfully delicious, I always look forward to this CNY delight every year and I make it a point to ONLY eat this during the CNY season. Honestly, it's a sinful pleasure to indulge in bakkwa with the oil dipping and all but hey... it's once a year!

This is one of the famous Bee Cheng Hiang stores in Singapore selling Bakkwa. Bee Cheng Hiang is one of the favourite brands and the queue at this particular store is always long!

HONG BAO

I love hong bao (red packets)... who doesn't right? Of course with money inside! Lots of money inside... hahaha. The worst is you open it to find 40 cents or something. Don't laugh... somebody experienced this before. Just pray that it doesn't happen to you.

REUNIONS

That's the other thing I like about Chinese New Year, you get to meet up with old buddies!

So here's to all... Happy Chinese New Year... Xin Nian Kuai Le... Gong xi ni...! (*Dev performing the lion dance as he fades off the stage...!)

Barack Obama

2009-01-19T19:29:00.000-08:00

Barack Obama is going to be inaugurated today! It's history in the making as the first African-American President of the most powerful country in the world is sworn in to office!

I, for one am genuinely excited to see how things are going to unfold. I think everybody's excited even the artistes. On Oprah Winfrey, Will.I.Am., Faith Hill, Seal, Mary J. Blige and Bono performed America's Song. Awesome stuff (live on Oprah. Click on the playlist to see the MV)... take a look!

Langkawi Part 3

2009-01-16T01:39:00.000-08:00

These are some videos I took during the mangrove trip as well as the Fish farm at Langkawi. One's about swimming monkeys, the other one's about a fish that jumps out to bite the finger food and the other one is the sting ray with a human face.

Langkawi Part 2

2009-01-14T08:02:00.000-08:00

Here's part 2 of my adventures. Take it like a scrapbook adventure blog... Hahaha!

Lunch at the Magrove - Barn Thai Restaurant. These are the friends I made during my mangrove trip.

Dead tired treking!

We were at the Floating Fish Farm. I'm not a big fan of sea creatures so it's a rather new experience on my part.

Horse shoe crab... Dan was saying that it looks like a scene from Aliens vs Predator.

Cave exploration

We actually went through this cave opening to get to our destination. Great skills on the boatman's part!

A shot of a butterfly in the forest I was treking in. Spot the butterfly. Sorry, camera lenses isn't powerful enough! New lenses... anyone?

One of the villas at The Datai. It's around RM 1800 per night for a villa surrounded by the rainforest. Feels like a kampung to me... hahaha.

Datai Bay is quite private, serene and relaxing. You get the feeling jsut by seeing this pic.

On a buggy ride at The Datai, an amazing boutique resort situated at Datai Bay, claimed to be the best beach at Langkawi. I like Tanjung Rhu as well. Torn between the two!

Long time since I saw this scene... hahaha. I was driving and then... I had to wait... wait... wait some more!

In order to reach Telaga Tujuh (Seven Wells), you need climb up. From the bottom, it looks as if the staircase is never ending. However, there are benches along the way for you to rest. While I was going up, some really old people were coming down. Even though they were slower and rested a lot at the benches, I salute them for their love for thrills and adventure.

This is the view at Telaga Tujuh. If I'm not mistaken, this is Telaga #4. For some particular reason, I had a very high expectation of the whole thing and it kind of fell short of my expectation.

Here I am... tired, hot and frowning at Telaga Tujuh.

This is the view from Gunung Mat Cincang. You can see the Petronas Quay from here. The road to drive out of this place is actually along the coastal line so you can imagine the journey out of this place.

Landscape from the mountain!

Nature's spotlight... hahaha!

Whe you take the cable up to the highest peak, you get to walk along this bridge which gives you a great view. Not for the weak at heart... hahaha. Just kidding. It's really very safe.

Monkey attack! Apart from the gramatical error, you really should pay attention to this sign. They steal everything. I was on an open sea kayak trip from one island to another and on one of the stops, I left my water bottle in the kayak. To my horror of horrors, I came back to find the water bottle empty. The monkey uncapped the bottle, drank the water and capped the bottle back again. Intelligent but mischiveous creatures!

Pulau Dayang Bunting's small jetty.

Water reflecting off Tasik Dayang Bunting.

As you can see, I didn't take this picture by myself. I happened to be in this cable car together with a gay couple. I struck a conversation with them and we were chatting awhile. I guess people are still people and they don't want to be treated like they are something 'odd' or in this sense, 'queer'. I've got to admit, they are very very conscious about the way they look in front of people as well as the camera. Interesting moment; alone in a cable car with a gay couple with nowhere to go! Hahaha.

This is my ride in Pulau Langkawi. Not too bad, quite sporty!

The money shot of the White-bellied Sea-eagle. It's a little blur because the birds move really fast and my camera lenses aren't as powerful! A glimpse of National Geographic in action!

This is the Brahminy Kite or the Red-backed Sea-eagle. This is the official bird of Langkawi. Langkawi actually consists of the words 'Lang' which comes from Helang meaning eagle and 'Kawi' meaning red = Red Eagle!

The birds going in for the catch!

Langkawi

2009-01-07T07:02:00.000-08:00

*Hi Guys. This post was meant to be up on Wednesday but there were lots of errors in uploading the post. It must have been the connection. This is the uncut and unedited version that was not meant to be... hahaha!

I'm at Langkawi now... I've been keeping myelf busy with lots of outdoor adventure activities. Island hopping, Eagle feeding, fresh water swimming, cable car ride, hiking etc... just to name a few! Tomorrow I'll be hiking to the Telaga Tujuh Waterfalls, parasailing and kayaking in the open sea. Friday will be the 5 hour mangrove kayaking and cave exploration before I fly back to KLIA.

There's a lot to write but I'm quite tired (physically) and I want to rest but to be fair I'll just post a few of the pics I've taken so far!

This is Chenang Beach where I'm staying. I took this shot yesterday evening while strolling on the beach.

The sun is setting even further... Look at the top left corner of the pic and you'll see a black dot. That's somebody parasailing!

Some kids playing by the beach... panoramic with a human touch.

Today's Island hoppinbg adventure - the jetty I left off from at Pantai Tengah

Man, I love Langkawi... beautiful!

Pulau Dayang Bunting... Pregnant Maiden's Island. Check it out... her face, breasts and her pregnant belly. Cool huh?

This is Tasik Dayang Bunting. It's a freshwater lake that is so close to the sea you'd think it's part of the sea. This lake is separated by a miracle barrier that causes it to be a freshwater lake but yet so slose to the sea you'd think it's part of it.

One of the hundreds of resident monkeys on this island.

This is not me sunbathing... hahaha! I just jumped into the lake for a swim. Left my SLR with one of the tourist who wasn't swimming. too tempted already. It's way cooler than swimming in the sea.

View from the cable car up Gunung Mat Cincang.

This is the lower station of the two on the way up to Gunung Mat Cincang.

The fable goes that Mat Cincang used to be a being that transformed himself into a mountain. Hmmnn...

There is a boardwalk at the higher station that allows you to walk "through" the mountain to have a real panaoramic view... simply amazing!

Petronas Quay where the boats and some yatches are parked.

So there you have it, adventures for today. Tomorrow's going to be more fun! *Yawn... Good night!

*Yup... Thursday for so fun, I was really too tired to even start blogging. So I guess I've to tell the story, not in the midlle of the action but away from it from now onwards...

Stay tuned for pics, sights and sounds of Langkawi coming soon...

Marina @ Keppel Bay

2008-12-29T11:46:00.000-08:00

Recently, I visited Marina @ Keppel Bay. The place is an awesome getaway that literally transports you into another world right in Singapore itself. What's amazing is that you will actually miss the place. In the hustle and bustle of Vivo City and Harbourfront, you will actually miss the tiny, indistinctive slip road that leads here! So watch for it.

Two restaurants I reccomend in this place is of course Prive (my gut feeling is that it's short for private). The other is TCC. I had dinner at the TCC when I visited the place. The view is good.

I also took the opportunity to take some shots. Here goes...

A shot of the bridge when the light was red

This when it was green

Yatch Club

Part of the Prive design...

Aimei with the bridge...

The cone shaped structure at the skyline in the background is Mt. Faber

I need a haircut

In memory of Jon Wong... you go with us... hahaha... solid shot... happened by mistake!

Joanna Wang

2008-12-18T01:14:00.000-08:00

Recently, I got myself a CD by a Taiwanese singer called Joanna Wang dubbed the Norah Jones of the East (though I beg to differ... I think she's unique in her own way).

Everytime Aimei and I walked past the music shop, they would be playing her stuff. We didn't know who the singer was but we always commented that the song is good and her voice, superb! However, we never got to buying the album because we never got into the shop... always in a hurry.

When we finally made it to the shop, the album was sold out! Talk about circumstances...! Since then, I've been finding high and low for it and finally, yesterday, I got my hands on the album! It's an awesome album! *Exclaim Exclaim!

It's a 2 CD album; one in English and the other in Chinese. For some particular reason, I feel that she does better in English!

I checked her out in Youtube after getting the CD and I realised she has done numerous covers in live cafe performances! Just to tickle your senses... your earbuds... hahaha... here are some of my favourite songs from the album!

This song is a cover of David Tao's I Love You

This one's Spandau Ballet's True re-made!

Let's Start From Here

This one is performed live at a cafe in Taipei - Video Killed the Radio Star

She's amazing with the classical guitar... hahaha! Left handed guitarist and she's only 20! This goes down as a definite "Dev's pick"!

CIQ... I see the Queue

2008-12-15T20:49:00.000-08:00

It's official now... The Old JB Customs is now closed! I repeat... it's now Closed! We the users are supposed to embrace the new CIQ!

Power la SGH 9323 J. Famous already!

Give it a few months and you won't see this guys (directing traffic) around anymore

As of late, I have been getting various emails and comments on the latest Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ). This 'mammoth' project has caused a mammoth headache in terms of jams due to road diversions and is a major contributer to pollution in JB city and for what... I don't know!

Now, I know there are those with their own preferences and all; some prefer the old one while others like the new one better.

For those who like the new one, I understand your feelings. At least you don't see the whole place (walls included) covered in soot! Give it some time, my friend! Hahaha. The soot is going to make a comeback... hahaha!

Some prefer the old customs due to its sentimental value. After all, it has been in operation for 41 years. For me, it's not so much the sentiments but the practicality! Nobody checks the passports! You just flash and go... (get it...? touch 'n go... flash 'n go) Of course I mean flash your passport and nothing else... hahaha! (You're so cheeky!)

Wah... are they acting or something?

For the new one, there's a super high-tech 'autogate' that is supposed to speed up the immigration process but sadly it malfunctions more than it actually functions! That's just for those who opt for public transport! For those driving, guess what? MR. J is still there, worse than ever! Yup... you guessed it. It's still JAMMED like CRAZY.

The familiar sight... Same same la...

So how do you come to terms with this mammoth project...?

Golda Meir

2008-12-02T23:09:00.000-08:00

I'm currently reading this book called 'Golda' by Elinor Burkett.

For those who don't know who Golda Meir is, she's the first female Prime Minister of Israel, the third female Prime Minister in the world and the first female PM who got the post without any family connections!

She is one of the founders of Israel; signed its Declaration of Independence and is one of the most respected women in the world with contemporaries such as David Ben-Gurion, Henry Kissinger and Richard Nixon.

She was a classic rag to riches story but remained true to her cause to the very end! She became Israel's Prime Minister at the age of 71 and led Israel in the midst of turbulent times of her era. Most of the time, she was the only woman in an old boys' club!

One look at her and you're reminded of your grandmother. Her image was perfect. the sensible shoes, frumpy dresses, swollen ankles typical to old people, her old-school handbag and her favourite Chesterfield cigarettes that were ever present with her with the hospitality of heaping food at you manipulates you into obedience! She is so good at foreign policy and her diplomacy skills so potent that she outmaneuvered Nixon and Kissinger at their own game of realpolitik!

I love her passion and tenacity to defend her homeland from skirmishes and enemies around. Her energy and stamina at that age is amazing for a leader of a nation.

I definitely recommend this book to anybody who loves to draw lessons and inspiration from others!

Sesame Seed... Sesame Street

2008-12-02T22:42:00.000-08:00

I was at Marina Square and guess who's in town? The guys from Sesame Street!

Cookie Monster, Ernie, Bert and Elmo super emo rocks! I grew up with these guys and it's really cool to see that 20 years later, they are still bringing joy and laughter to millions of kids worldwide! Kids were responding, singing and dancing together with them... simply amazing!

These guys never age, never change, they look and sound the same... talk about age defying puppets... they have found the answers to eternal youthfulness! Cosmetic products have got to learn from them... the fountain of youth flows at Sesame Street with sesame seeds!

My favourite characters have always been Bert & Ernie (Ernie especially), Count Dracula and Cookie Monster. Ernie tops them all! Funny guy... very witty as well.

I am beginning to ask myself why is there a post on cartoons and the like every now and then! I guess there is always a part of me that's too zany to deny!

Michael Jordan vs CEO John Rogers

2008-11-13T19:41:00.000-08:00

Many of you know that one of the sports that I'm reasonably good at is basketball. Well, to tell you the truth, it is probably the only sport I can say that I have a form of confidence playing.

The person responsible for the love of the game is none other than Michael Jordan, His Airness himself. Why am I blogging about Jordan...? You will find out soon enough...

I still remember staying up late on Friday nights watching NBA games aired on RTM 1 (nobody watches RTM 1 apart from this show... hahaha). My friends and I would copy the moves and talk about the game the next day especially if it's a game that features Jordan.

So when I stumbled upon this video of MJ in his basketball camp for CEOs and high flyers called "School of Flight", I thought it was funny. It's about this CEO "smoking" Jordan on the court. Of course, his airness has yet to turn on the heat but it was funny with Damon Wayans (Wayans' brothers) making jokes at Jordan being outsmarted in his own turf...

Check out the video!

Modern Rock

2008-11-06T19:47:00.000-08:00

Hi there! Yup... I'm back... again! The Return from the Dead Part II. Sorry, no lame excuses this time, just very solid, justifiable reasons... it's the economic recession! Hahaha!

This is the first post for november; a far cry of the consistency that used to be in days past! Anyways, I do have something interesting to share... as always... (*take a bow... if I was wearing a top hat, *take a bow, hats off).

I just rediscovered my passion for the music which I used to listen to when I was in High School. The genre I was into those days is Modern Rock. My super super favourite of the time was this singer called Alanis Morissette.

Her international debut album, Jagged Little Pill is the highest selling debut album by any artist ever! I would blast her music from my hifi set at home after school, at night, when I'm studying... truly classic!

So for those who have no idea whatsoever on Alanis, here is a taste of her brand of music:

Alanis Morissette - Ironic

This one is called Hands in Pocket

You Oughta Know

Another band that spat out anthems for the generation is none other than Oasis. My favourite one is of course 'Don't Look Back in Anger'

So there you have it... my High School songs... actually, some of the high school songs which fall into the category of modern rock.

Of course, this was just one of the phases in my growing years. I have yet to show you the Rap and hip hop stuff which I used to listen to. Maybe, I'll show you guys one of these days... just maybe!

Enjoy your weekend people! Enjoy the MV as well!

I'm a Dim Sum Dolly-man

2008-10-22T08:35:00.000-07:00

Recently I discovered an awesome place to eat dim sum in Singapore. Awesome... because:

1. It tastes good

2. It is affordable compared to the other high-end joints

3. It has been around since the 60's

4. Wong Lilin (my favourite Singapore actress a long time ago) ate there

5. Some other celebrities ate there as well

6. The restaurant belongs to my friend, Earnest's grandparents

7. I say it is good... (being the fussy pot that I am)

So there you have it; 7 good reasons why you should visit:

Swee Choon Tim-Sum Restaurant (Air-Conditioned... but if you're the back alley sort, there's also back alley seating)
187/189/191, Jalan Besar, Spore 208882
6pm-10am except Sunday and Public holidays.

It's situated opposite New World Centre.

Let me show you some of my recommended dishes in the house:

The siu mai is really quite good. The har kau (sorry for the terrible pin yin) is good as well. The carrot cake is also a chef's reccomendation.

The xiao long pao is my personal favourite. The soup overflows from the inside and it's really very juicy... *I'm hearing strange noises from my tummy now. This is definitely a must-have!

This dumpling in dried chili sauce thingy is also very delicious. I like it a lot. It was my first time trying out wanton made in such a style.

This is thus far the weirdest Chinese dish I've tasted. What you are witnessing right now is the Chinese Roti Canai (Prata... in some translations). It's called "Spring... something... something... I can't remember... Sorry. Maybe you can try asking them for the Chinese Prata... hahaha. It tastes good... really... even though it's Chinese...!

The Jelly Cheese Cake was my choice of dessert. It's good. I liked it!

For the more adventurous sort, you can try the Pandan Glutinous Ball with Red Bean Paste. I'm not a big fan of Pandan, Red Bean and Glutinous stuff so this was definitely a no-go for me but based on the reviews from my friends who were with me, they were singing praises for this dish!Go ahead and try it.

I ordered a simple "noodle in oil and sauce" and allowed the dim sum to be the highlight of my dinner so there's nothing fancy about my noodles!

Overall, it was a good experience! Now don't go around comparing this to Ipoh Dim Sum or Crystal Jade. They are different in nature. If you're looking for something tasty and affordable in Singapore, this is the place to head to!

Do share with me your experiences when you visit the place and let me know what you think!

The Complexity of Life...

2008-10-16T08:58:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys!

Finally, I'm back to scribble something on my blog! Really sorry for the long time off. I've been extremely busy the past one and a half months and I'll get busier the next two months... hahaha. Oh yeah... for those still wondering... I'm not dead... still alive and breathing helium... hahaha!

Today I made a decision to stop giving excuses and just start doing something about the blog.

To give you a little update, I just upgraded my room. I got myself a table and a bed side lamp from IKEA. There's nothing interesting about this story except for its complexity and how much trouble it gave me. I got a table and lamp,reached home and unpacked it...

I started with the table...

... and yes, the table legs (sold separately...) are called Vika Curry. They might as well call it Chicken Curry... hahaha.

As I opened and read the manual, I realized I needed a Philip Screwdriver (Flower head for those unfamiliar with the term Philip's head).

So I decided to move on to the lamp and started reading the manual for that...

For those of you who don't understand Polish...

Yup... I needed a correct screw driver for the given screw and I didn't have in my hand a Philip Screwdriver or any screwdrivers for that matter...

I decided to put the project on hold until I got myself a screwdriver.

I managed to borrow a screwdriver the next day and continued on with the project that was shelved for a day.

I started off with the lamp and it was a success.

This picture is for aesthetic value... hahaha!

However, in the process of fixing the lamp, I began to get this suspicious feeling that the screwdriver is going to give way... and it did! I fixed one leg and after that the screwdriver refused to grip the screw!

Why?

Simply because the 'flower' head had 'withered' and could no longer grip the screw...

The table was left stanbding with just one leg for another day. I got myself a proper, new, bought it myself, Philip Screwdriver and fixed that one-legged table for good!

I see no point in showing the picture of the table for all the hassle it has put me through... Anyways, it's white in colour and it stands with four legs... hahaha!

There you have it... the complexity of life...! I know... the title can be a little misleading. Sorry if you were looking for answers on world peace, solving hunger problem and widespread poverty... I'll have to deal with these matters on a more serious note one of these days... Till then, have a great week!

Selamat Hari Raya

2008-09-30T11:43:00.000-07:00

Selamat Hari Raya everybody! Maaf Zahir Batin! I would expect that most people would be travelling and heading back to their respective hometowns for Malaysians. For Singaporeans, it's going to be a one day break to spend time relaxing with family friends! Either ways, it's going to be fun!

I don't have much to offer to you during this Raya festive period. I was really cracking my head on what would be the best Raya gift to all my readers, so I came up with a brilliant gift for everybody!

Since there's going to be a whole great deal of feasting, feasting and some more feasting of such delicacies such as:

Ketupat

Lemang

Rendang

After eating so much, I am concerned about all that excess calories you have accumulated! You need to exercise!

Exercising needs a lot of motivation and one good way to get yourself motivated in the gym is having a great music playlist to pump yourself up for your workout! There... you have guessed it! My Raya gift is I'm going to share my gym music playlist with you so that you're going to be motivated to hit the gym hard!

What do I have on my playlist?

50 Cent - In Da Club
POD - Alive
Daddy Yankee - Gasolina
Eve feat Swizz Betz - Tambourine
Chris Brown - Forever
JLo - Get it Right
Cassie - Is it you?
Michael Jackson - Jam
Kanye West - Stronger
Cherish feat Yung Joc - Killa
Eminem - Lose Yourself
Bombfunk MCs - Freestylers
Neyo - Miss Independent
Nelly feat Fergie - Party People
Fort Minor - Remember the Name
Limp Bizkit - Rollin'
Prodigy - Smack my ***** up
Prodigy - Breathe
Moby - Bodyrock
Murphy Lee - What da hook gonna be?
POD - Boom

My personal favourites that really get me going is

Fort Minor - Remember the Name
Limp Bizkit - Rollin'
POD - Alive
Daddy Y?ankee - Gasolina
50 Cent - Daddy Yankee

Let us know what is your preference when it comes to gym music.

Sentosa Island with Dev

2008-09-27T05:22:00.000-07:00

I went out with some friends to Sentosa today! I did a lot of photo taking with my camera so here goes... the sites and scenes of Sentosa. I'm minimizing words... let the pics (and the captions) do the talking. (Readers screaming from behind the screen: "Shut up and get on with the pictures...!")

Ok... ok... I get the point!

How do you know you're in Sentosa? Signboards is one way...

... or even these tiny canoes or kayaks... (I think I'll go with canoes)... you'll always know when you're in Sentosa!

My friends told me that it's fun... didn't try it though!

Now this is the real deal... the sun, the sand and the sea!

I love the sea a lot. I used to say that my name, Dev in Gaelic means "lover of the sea". I was about to type that out but I decided to check first and to my horror of horrors, 'Dev' does not mean "lover of the sea" anymore. Hahaha. I checked it out when I was 13 years old... and I've been living 12 years of my life with that definition. The guy who did that website must have simply made up a "mystical" meaning to the name!

What a shocker?!! Instead, I found out that my name, Dev in Gaelic means "poet" and in Bengali/Sanskrit means "divine/deity"... hahaha!

Ok... enough of side table talk... I am not going to steer away from the topic anymore...

We played beach soccer and volleyball but somehow or rather, volleyball seemed to be the favourite choice for most of them!

The guys hanging out with Eric giving his "I kill you" look!

And guess who I bumped into at Sentosa? Vic... yup, what a small world! It's been some time since we actually met so it was great to see her again! Fancy meeting her at Sentosa of all places.

Being the friendly guy that I am, I approached these two gentlemen to snap a picture of their tattoo... The Tattooist... Muahahahaha... I skin color you!

Talking about colours, I caught a glimpse of a very colourful bird that most of you guys know about...

Yes, the peacock! Walking proudly and parading itself, I wished I had a camera with greater focus and zoom! *Think National Geographic quality shots.

I took many more shots but I think I'll upload and dump them on my Facebook! I think they are not too bad shots... let me know what you think!

Boybands Pop!

2008-09-23T20:21:00.000-07:00

New Kids on the Block, Take That, Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync, Westlife... What's the big deal with them? They were the craze back in the day with their balloon pants, weird 90's hairstyle and super soapy ballads that got all the gals (and some guys...) chanting their names, throwing their underwears onto the stage in concerts, sticking countless posters all around the room and some
even building an "altar" devoted to their "idols"!

New Kids on the Block...

Take That... (They might as well just kiss each other...)

Backstreet Boys... (All of them have got leg problems... can't stand properly... fell down at Interchange... hahaha)

'Nsync... Thank God for Justin... (the only good thing that came out from boybands)

Westlife... (No words can express what I feel about this picture... how do they actually stomach taking this shot?... and they all look a little constipated, don't they?)

Now, you may think that I'm a hater but I don't think I am. I really did try to accept them as much as I can but they never fail to do the silliest things... just look at all the shots taken above! How can you not feel like taking a shovel and knocking all their heads...

Ok, ok... I know I grew up listening to Michael Jackson, Suede, Prodigy, Tupac, Oasis... a bit dark and they aren't the perfect role models as well... (think Michael Jackson and lil' boys) but at least they are great performers who defined cutting edge in their times....

I know I'm just being a little biased and everybody has their own taste in music. Some bands appeal more to others than the rest... I can accept that but... *sigh.

Why this talk about boybands? Just the other day I saw the latest video from New Kids on the Block. Yup, looking not so new and not very 'kid', they are back to the block with their infectious new hit "Summertime". This is not something new as recently, a whole bunch of boybands are making a comeback.

So I have decided to just show you their videos and you tell me what you think. It'll be great to see all those old, famous poses and dances that boybands are so famous for... the old vids as well as the new ones.

NKOTB - Step by Step (old)

NKOTB - Summertime (new)

Take That - Back for Good (old)... got to admit, this song is not too bad! The rain is classic boyband though... hahaha!

Take That - Patience (new)

Backstreet Boys - Get Down (old)

Backstreet Boys - Incomplete (new)

A leopard never loses its spots huh? You can see that the pattern is still there!

Do tell us what you think... Boybands Pop!

Falling Giants

2008-09-19T00:59:00.000-07:00

Times are a little tough. In the backdrop of all the economic turmoil in the world today:

AIG receiving a whopping $85 billion rescue in funds from the American government

The solution: Sell off Ronaldo... better still, sell off Manchester United... to Petronas, Malaysia... hahaha.

(Now put the three together and you'll get an amazing jersey - jalur tong gas merah gemilang. Translated: The glorious stripes of the red gas cylinder... No more the red devils!)

Merrill Lynch & Co. being bought by Bank of America for a mere $50 billion (Can you imagine that?... it's like a fraction of the price...)
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. going bankrupt

As I said, in the midst of the fall of all these investment giants... I, another giant at 1.90 m also had a terrible fall!

Yup... you heard it right! I, Dev Menon, had a super fly fall in full view of the public in the bus interchange while running for the bus. I didn't realize that the floor was wet... (until now I'm still puzzled why the floor was wet... it wasn't raining this morning... some kid must have emptied the water from the water bottle his mum gave him!)

I basically flew up in the air and landed, full body weight, on my left thigh...

Yes... my legs are quite hairy... I can't imagine how the bruise is going to look tomorrow!

At the same time, I scratched my arms by the curb... So now it looks like I was slashed by a parang... a really small parang

I was then brought for treatment to a Chinese Sensei (for the first time ever in my life...). To tell you the truth, I never had a very good impression of them. I think it's due to too many kung fu movies with the sensei releasing power to the victim and he starts vomiting blood and all.

I was expecting something like a really horrible and painful twisting and bending of my thighs... the Sensei said, "No need do that..." He went on to say the terrible 'A' word; ACUPUNCTURE!

I freaked out! Needles and me never ever go together! I tried to wiggle my way out but to no avail... So...

Yup... I took down my pants for the sensei and he poked me with all these tiny needles...

You see the needle that is at the upper right of the screen? That hurt the most!

However, after the acupuncture, my thighs did feel a little light... for a short while. Then the pain returned again... Sad!

I tried reading on acupuncture points but I just couldn't stomach it. My imagination started running wild; imagining all those points being "accurately" "punctured" with thousands of tiny needles. I have a very low pain threshold...

So there you have it... it's not just investment and banking giants that are gritting their teeth and walking with a limp. I am the latest addition to the statistics... Sigh! *Grits teeth and walks away limping.

Yum yum yum... Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan!

2008-09-16T01:09:00.000-07:00

This is is a special posting. Why? It's about FOOD... glorious food! I am going to share with you some of my favorite eating places from both sides of the Causeway!

Disclaimer:

Now, it is by no means an exhaustive list... not even close! There's definitely going to be more instalments to this.

Taste buds may differ from one bud to another... one man's poop is another man's fertilizer.

I'm a general food (consumable by the masses) kind of eater so chances are you're not going to find "special" food like dogs, frogs, intestines (of all animals), placenta of a mosquito and the likes... Enough talk, let's get down to business:

1. Ayam Penyet & Burger Ayam Special Cheese @ Kafe Banafe

Kafe Banafe is situated opposite New York Hotel in JB. You can't miss this stall with neon lights to spell out Banafe at the entrance. Always packed, their specialty is Ayam Penyet which is chicken served in Indonesian style sambal! White rice is optional. It's very spicy so it's not for the weak at heart.

The chicken is juicy and super mouth-watering!

The concept is very 'mamak' meaning it's a blend of open air and sheltered seating!

While at Banafe, you can also order Ayam Special Cheese burger (Chicken burger with egg and cheese)!

It tastes so good, it defines Ramly burgers! The bread is a little crispy and you can still get the buttery taste in your mouth! The flavors blend very well and the cheese practically melts in your mouth! Not high on health however but to spoil yourself once in awhile... you should!

The food here is tasty and is worth every ringgit you spend!

2. Ikan Bakar @ Centrepoint

Centrepoint is a hawker center situated on top of a hill just behind the Esso opposite Menara Pelangi along Jalan Tebrau. It is just behind the row of medical centres such as Pathlab and also the famous Alpha and Omega Tuition Centre. When you're there, order the Ikan Pari (Sting Ray) and ask them to add extra sambal. Don't worry because the sambal here isn't spicy! It's just very rich in taste... quite peanuty I would say!

3. Rosmarino Italian Restaurant

Rosmarino is more of a fine dining restaurant. You get exquisite Italian food, highly rated and recommended by food reviews!

I highly recommend their Italian Meats Pizza!

This shot was taken when I took away the pizza!

Undoubtedly, it's a very "guy's" pizza. For something not so meaty, you can try the Seafood Pizza which is also great (but nothing beats Italian meats... hahaha).

The pasta is good as well according to Aimei. The carbonara, seafood... etc. I'm not big on pasta (too much carbo... show me the meat...)

Pasta

The salad is good as well!

Aimei looking really hungry!

Rosmarino is at 123 Jalan Damai, 80300 Johor Bahru, Phone: +60 7 222 1820. I'm giving you the address because it is not very easy to describe. All I can say is that it's very near Stulang and opposite Lion's Hotel situated at the row of shophouses! The place is really comfy and the ambience is great!

Good food is like treasure... so happy hunting!

Now let's jump across the Causeway and see what the island of Singapore has to offer!

4. Prawn noodles @ Food Republic Level 4, Wisma Atria

This is the best prawn noodles in the whole of Malaysia and Singapore... hands down winners... no matter what others may say!

The gravy in the noodles is so good, you'll crave for more!

It is served in this fragrant leaf; makes it all the more fragrant and appetizing!

The prawn are oh so succulent! Always fresh and big... !

It's a little bit pricy at SGD 4.50 for a small plate but it's all worth it... trust me!

You can't miss the store; it has a straw hat concept. The workers wear a straw hat so that you can't miss them!

5. Grilled Indonesian Chicken @ Suntec Tower 3 Food Court

Situated at Suntec Tower 3 Food Court, it serves the best and most eatable food for this office area! I eat this nearly everyday for lunch!

I like to "banjir" (flood) my rice with curry. It tastes better that way!

6. Carrot Cake @ Bedok Interchange

Good carrot is hard to come by in Malaysia. However in Singapore, it's a different story! You can find good carrot cake almost anywhere! This is the best of the best so far in my opinion that is affordable yet very delicious!

It comes in two types, the dark and white one!

Both are good! The only downside that I could think of is that if you are to eat in, it's going to be quite stuffy! The place is quite packed and you will most probably leave the place smelling like smoke or something!

You could bring a change of clothes... things we would do for food, right?

Jumping back to other side of the Causeway again, we have...

7. Mee Rebus @ Kafe Enampuluhan

Kafe Enampuluhan (60's Cafe) is situated opposite Stulang Laut!

It doesn't look like a 60's cafe and I don't know why they called it Kafe Enampuluhan. All I care is that the Mee Rebus is quite good served with their Lobak ayam (chicken lobak).

Mee Rebus

You can choose the amount of eggs you want... half, one, two or even three eggs... up to you! The Mee Rebus goes great with the lobak ayam! It tastes great together!

Lobak ayam

8. Banana Chips @ Grandma's

Well, the last one is a home cooked delight that my grandma is really good at... banana chips! I've been eating it sinceI was a kid. I can fininsh a whole tin of it all by myself!

With it's striking yellow color and delightful taste, it makes a great evening snack to go with teh-o or while catching a movie!

I took this pics after I've finished three quarter of it... hahaha!

There you have it; a partial list of things I like to eat at places I like to roll! Hope this will help in your future quests for food!

Oh yeah... final note: Remember to exercise!

The Winner is...

2008-09-15T10:44:00.000-07:00

With a total of 59 voters voting to suppport their favorite pics, the results for the Unity in Diversity Project is out.

With a total of 26 votes (44%)... *drumroll, THE WINNER IS... JING MI! *Balloons, glitters. confetti (with Eli, the confetti thrower)! Congratulations! You have won yourself an RM 10 Starbucks Voucher! The readers have decided that your picture best reflects unity in diversity!

Congratulations to the rest of the finalists as well! The race was close and you guys did well! Thanks for the effort and initiative! Your submissions prove that unity in this diverse culture that we live in is something treasured dearly even in our generation! You guys are awesome!

To the readers/voters, thank you for playing your part and supporting this really tiny, ultra mini project!

So here is the winning picture submitted by Jing Mi:

This must be a double whammy for Mi as we also celebrated her belated birthday on Sunday at an Italian Restaurant!

Huey and Mi, the birthday gal!... Not a very clear shot! Sorry gals!

Spooky photo taken by Ber... *eerie, haunt, haunt...

Z'ng jealous and ostracized 'coz it's not his birthday! (courtesy of Ber...)

Shuffle Prince trying real hard to shuffle with his lips!

Rare and his "voodoo" doll!

And to end it all, a finger dance for the birthday gal... hmmnnn... more like they shiok sendiri and did it for themselves! Hahaha! If you find this video offensive, do tell me... hahaha!

Mi, enjoy it all! You deserve it. Happy Birthday and Congratulations! Starbucks awaits you...

Gleanings from History

2008-09-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

Being a Malaysian living in Singapore is to me some sort of ambassadorship where you get to represent and be the spokesperson for your country in a foreign land.

Now this may sound cool (it is actually...) but it becomes a little bit embarassing when you have to explain... again and again...

Why is Anwar accused of sodomy... again (like it's Part 2 of some B-Grade sequel that we don't know about or something)?

Why is Raja Petra, Teresa Kok and Tan Chee Hoon arrested under ISA (I think they would also be arrested if they did the same in Singapore... hahaha)?

Raja Petra

What's up with Ahmad Ismail (why isn't he in ISA... he also havoc-ed Internal Security, what?)?

As I was pondering on these matters especially with the whole Ahmad Ismail saga looming over the nation and racial tensions at all time high, I realized that we, Malaysians ought to be cautious; we don't want to end up fighting the wrong things or worse still, fighting one another!

Let me explain: What we're seeing now is really a shadow of what actually happened in 1969. You studied it in history lessons but the picture was never quite painted right! We were taught that May 13 1969 was a result of communal violence; racial tensions flared up and people killed each other.

However, as documents once classified by the British government were declassified, the truth was out. Dr. Kua Kia Soong in his book "Declassified Documents on the Malaysian riots of 1969” discovered that May 13, 1969 was instead politically motivated.

That elections, the ruling Alliance retained the overall majority but they lost the two-thirds majority (sounds familiar...?). They wanted to shelve Tunku and put up Razak... (sounds familiar...? See the family ties...?).

I thought that it was a really cruel thing to shelve Tunku; an awesome leader and my all-time favorite PM!

To cut the whole story short, mutilation and cruelty is what followed; a black mark in our history.

You see, it is never about just about the different skin colors that we have. We have been getting along quite fine. Of course we have our differences. We all have our flaws but we all have our unique strengths as well!

Our beef is not with one another; Malay, Chinese or Indians. The real culprits are those with selfish ambitions that toy with the rakyat to feed their hunger for power.

It is not flesh and blood that we fight but powers and principalities! The battle cannot be won with brute force. It is a battle to win the hearts and minds of people.

Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary - Gandhi

They used to say that the pen is the weapon of the future. Well, things have progressed! The keyboard is now the weapon of the future; music is the weapon of the future!

Let's glean lessons from history; it is never meant to be repeated twice!

Tak Puas Hati

2008-09-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

I'm now at the state of tak puas hati (directly translated: unsatisfied heart... what it actually means: not very happy and satisfied) at this current moment... 'somebody' or rather 'somebodies' copied the bear idea on my blogskin and used it on theirs! This is blogger war in the lines of Xiaxue vs Dawn!

However, for what it's worth, the bear did get some interesting reviews though! What did some readers have to say about the bear?

Shuffle Prince: tht luk lyk a bear drunk while dreaming haha..

dan: Dev, is that a bear ? (No, dan. ... It's a rabbit! Hahaha)

Quite a big difference, right?

@*mei (*hint... culprit culprit): dev..why is there a bear on your skin?! wat's it suppose to do!?!?

Wanna take a guess who the culprits are? Hahaha! My readers are smart so you'd probably have guessed the first one! The second one was an accomplice... a metro, fair and supple skin, artsy-fartsy... yup, you guessed it... z'_ _! (*Hush... not too loud... *Whisper whisper... they might hear).

Being the kind and forgiving person that I am, I release and forgive them! So here are some bear photos instead to cheer you up!

It's a short posting. Enjoy and don 't forget to vote for your favourite nominees of the Unity in Diversity Project!!

Unity in Diversity Result Show

2008-09-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

Remember the post on Unity in Diversity? Guess what? The Result Show Posting is here! All you got to do is vote for your favourite pic that best depicts unity in diversity! There is no fixed or set criteria. Just choose your favourite; whatever tickles your fancy!

Your vote counts because the winner (the one with the highest votes) will walk away with a RM 10 Starbucks Voucher!!! (Budget is a bit tight... there will come a day when the prizes are going to be sponsored... hahaha! Till then, prizes are a little 'budget'.

Don't forget to vote at the polls, ok? Now, the nominees in the running for the best Unity in Diversity pics are as follows:

#1: Elizabeth Chia

#2: Leo

#3: Gary Chia

#4: Jing Mi

Hit the polls everybody! All the best to all!

Jae Son and Eunice's Wedding

2008-09-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

I was down for Jae Son and Eunice's wedding and it was awesome! They packed Hall 1 and 2 of the Sutera Pekin Restaurant with 100 tables~1000 people! Congratulations guys! You've been the most amazing friends in my life! Eunice is my friend since I was a kid... like 2-3 years old (at least that's how far back I can recall). It was really great to see her get married and all! Very happy for her!

Jae Son and Eunice Cheng giving their speech

Yam Seng time!

Eunice looking extremely happy with herself as well as the bouquet of flowers at the end of the whole day!

On top of that, it was a great time of catching up and meeting friends and teachers that I've not met for a very long time (*ages)! I've just got to try to introduce at least some of the amazing people who are in my life that many of you may not know about! I'm going to try... there's really too many of them! So I tried to snap as many pics with them as possible!

Mrs. Kwan taught me English when I was in Primary School. She made sure that my handwriting was neat all the time... all the time! A very loving person, very gentle and kind! When it comes to school work, she is strict! Teachers like her never fail to impress me and leave a mark in my life.

Auntie Ai Lan as we fondly call her (to me she's still 'Teacher'...) is the most amazing Geography teacher you can ever have! Her passion for the subject is so genuine, it is infectious! She helped me see geography not as another subject to ace but to enjoy the sheer thrill of learning it. Guess what? She was telling me that her favourite channel on Astro is (*drum roll... National Geographic and Animal Planet... that doesn't come as a surprise!). An amazing teacher!

Uncle Ven and Ant. Sze are my mentors when I was a youth growing in church! They are amazing! They guided me through the crazy maze of youth life and I was not easy to handle; always up to some mischief... I blame peer pressure... it's them Unc. Ven, Ant. Sze... they made me do it! Hahaha! Extremely patient people who see the potential behind every young person!

Tien Ern (best buddies but never keep in touch until events such as this) and Ern Yi are my inspirations for gym-ing

Mae, Yu Pei and Phoebe (Tien Ern's Gf). Mae and Yu Pei are noise and laughter generators! They can make your day anytime! I think Phoebe is the new addition. She has an infectious laughter that compliments the team dynamics! Hahaha!

Li Chuan and Si Ming! It has been like ages since I met them especially Li Chuan... I think since Form 5! She's great to chat with! One of the more popular people in school those days!

Ming's classic sweet gal... not as innocent as she looks though... sweet doesn't mean naive! Ming's gifted with a brilliant mind and she's classy! (Special shout out to Yunika who took this shot for me... I hope I got your name spelled right. It was great knowing you!)

I nearly couldn't recognize Sukhjit because she changed so much! She looked more studious in her schooling days (don't worry Sukhjit, we all were... I am the biggest culprit of all... hahaha) but now she looks like a model!

Fui Shan is also one whom I couldn't recognize! She looked so familiar yet couldn't really get it... She is another person who has changed so much...

Lee Yen I couldn't really recognize as well until she started talking. She's got a trademark talking pattern... it gave her away!

This is a race-based picture with Leanna and my bro... hahaha... just kidding... actually, not really! We are all Malayalees! For those of you who are still wondering... wikepedia us! We are a homogenous group classified linguistically but recently, due to increasing amounts of non-speakers of the language, it is also to include the Malayalee cultural tradition!

I thoroughly enjoyed myself today! Great wedding, great people... nothing beats that!

Finally... CONGRATULATIONS MR. & MRS. CHENG! Have an awesome honeymoon!

(Ok... I know the last few sentences don't link as well as it should... quite tired already... got to sleep!)

sHots

2008-09-04T10:06:00.000-07:00

By now, you probably must have heard news of this new toy that is in my possession. Well, it is confirmed! I'm now using the Canon 450D to snap pics for blogging purposes. For some of you who are wondering what's the big deal about this camera... all I can say is that it is a BIG DEAL!

Some of you might be already asking me, "Dev, what is a DSLR?"... (I can read minds...hahaha)". Well, if you need to know, DSLR stands for Digital Single-Lens Reflex Camera.

I'm not about to give you a 3 page lecture on the the differences between the DSLR and a regular digicam! Too sleepy for that... maybe it's time you did some reading yourself... but then again, this is supposed to be an informative site....

Ok... one difference... the size of the sensor... DSLR is bigger than the normal digicams. The LCD live preview is another difference... conventional DSLRs don't have them! This is so that there is no lag between what you see in reality at the speed of light and what you snap! However Olympus released a DSLR with live preview LCD in 2000! Technology at it's cutting edge!

So let me show you some of the pics that I took. It's my first and early shots so please bear with some blur shots etc. I'll try to improve the quality of the shots in the future! For now, enjoy!

A tribute to the cybershot phone that started it all! You still have a special place in my heart! It will still be used for this blog!

And now to the models who contributed to the shots:

Pink & trees by Stulang

Zng on contemplative mode

Abstract~Emo Dot: the shot is a bit blur though

Happy Dot

Zng & Pink - guess who is who!

Lamp...

Piuweet!

So I guess there's at least one more thing to expect from the blog; better photos, better shots... hopefully!

Laser Quest

2008-09-01T20:50:00.000-07:00

Last week, a bunch of us headed down to Bukit Gombak for Laser Quest. It's actually inside the Home Team Club. All you need to do is drop at Bukit Gombak MRT and take bus 925 (I think it's 925... You'll know if it actually brings you there... if it doesn't, then you'll know it's the wrong bus... Hahaha! You live, you learn!)

When you reach the place, you will see Laser Quest terpampang (loosely translated: splat on a surface for all to see) on the wall...

Laser quest is quite simple to play. It is in the line of Counter Strike but only this time, it's physical... It doesn't sound as rough... trust me... it's way less painful than paintball!

You are actually using jackets mounted with sensors as well as a laser gun.

The sensors and guns are hooked up to the main computer so that all your shots and hits by people are tabulated at the end of the game! Everytime you're hit, the sensor on your chest buzzes and you'll be deactivated for 5 secs before you're back to the game!

High andrenaline, big rush! You're split to two teams and at the end, the team with highest score wins! It's that easy. Each game is ten minutes. You may think it's short but when you actually play it... you will be running up and down, you will wish it is gonna end soon (in a good way, of course...).

After playing the first round, we decided to go for Round 2, this time around, it was every man for himself... that means, no more teams! Individual effort!

This was even more fun than the first round! I finished fourth! You wanna guess who was the champion?

Yup... it's Rufeng! No gender chauvinism here! She rox! So now you know that this game is open for everybody! There's no need to feel inadequate...

Of course, in every war, there's always the guy who plays dirty... hahaha!

See the cheeky look! Hahaha. No offense dude! Vincent just sits alone in this dark corner and shoots at everybody who passes by. You won't know where the shots came from until it's too late! That's why they called him 'The Camper'!

It's really really fun! Good exercise as well! $3.50 for 10 minutes (a game) and it's all worth it!

Sorry about the pics though... it isn't very clear! Dark and the shots were taken by the guy in charge!

After looking at the pics, something dawned upon me... I look ridiculously unkempt! Thus, I decided to go for a haircut!

So this is how I look now! Good... ok ok... not good... super bad? Let me know! Hmmmm... maybe I should poll this... Hahaha. Polling is the next National pastime... hahaha!

Unity in Diversity

2008-08-27T22:23:00.000-07:00

Malaysia's 51st Hari Merdeka is coming up on 31st August. The thing I like about living in the Malaysia-Singapore region is that we live in a multi racial society.

We speak different languages, have different cultural backgrounds... We may have different skin colors but we're the same people!

Get the idea?

I can't imagine a world with everybody looking the same and behaving like programmed robots. I'm glad that God created us diverse and unique, just the way we are! A monochromatic world is not my cup of tea!

So this time around, the post is going to get a little unique... you know! It's going to be interactive and the stage is going to be yours!

You get to put up any pictures that is originally shot by you (taking from flickr is not an option... hahaha) or with you in it that reflects multi racial and cultural living... and send it to me!

It can be a picture of you and your friends or a shot taken of a scene that shows multi racial living!

I will then compile them and put it up on the blog with a shout out to you...! This is not open only to Malaysians... it is for everybody!

So send yours today at devmenon_dm@yahoo.com! Well, I'll be compiling them from now until post merdeka celebrations so you have ample time to snap away and send me as many shots as possible!

Let's celebrate unity in diversity! Snap away!

Smooch a Pooch

2008-08-24T21:08:00.000-07:00

'Woof' everybody! (Extending paws to shake hands). This was the common sight at Singapore Expo on 24th Aug.

I was taking a walk through Singapore Expo and I had this sudden realization that there were an unusual amount of pure bred dogs around. Being the curious cat that I am (*pause... at this point I would like to make myself clear that I'm not a big fan of cats... It's just a figure of speech...), I decided to snoop around (so now I'm Snoop Dogg... hahaha).

To my pleasant surprise, there was a Dog Show going on! It was the SKC 166th & 167th Championship Dog Show at Singapore Expo organized by the Singapore Kennel Club. I took a few pictures with the dogs and I'll give you a rough description of them for your general information.

Me and a Golden Retriever

Golden Retrievers are one of the most intelligent dogs. They are used as guides for the blind and they make excellent Rescue dogs. Since they are very energetic, you got to keep them busy or else... there goes the entire shoe collection, bitten, eaten and torn to a million pieces, just to amuse themselves!

Me and a Greyhound

The Greyhound is the Racing Dog. They are used to race and are popular for their speed and agility. They are all muscle!

They've got this thing in their stride; very 'royalty'... quite dainty as well!

However, they are not really high energy dogs, opting to save their energy for the next chase. In between chases, they are couch potatoes. They eat a lot (high metabolism... something I can relate to... hahaha). They are very sociable and friendly dogs; chilling out with their owners on the couch is fun!

Me and a Jack Russell Terrier

Jack Russells are just so full of energy. I nearly bought one for my mum but after much research and deliberation, we went against buying one in case she found it too much of a handful. These dogs have the impression that they are actually larger than themselves and will work until they wear themselves out.

They are quite on the mischievious side and always looking for an adventure. Fun to have but the commitment level is high as it's super attention-seeker.

Remember, Milo from The Mask (starring Jim Carrey)? Milo is a Jack Russell!

Me and these noisy bunch of American Cocker (black) and Bichon-Frise (white)

The American Cocker is really cute. Great family dog. Cocker Spaniels have a bit of a reputation for being gluttonous (some of you can relate... hahaha... get this dog and you have company to indulgence everyday... hahaha).

The Bichon-Frise is a great companion dog. It's very obedient and not stubborn unlike many of us... hahaha! It can tolerate when you play rough but the problem is it may be easily hurt... so go easy!

The one I met the other day was quite excited and kept barking non-stop! The owner commented that it had an identity crisis... it think that it's a poodle... hahaha!

A pair of Rottweilers

Contrary to popular belief, the Rottweiler is not a scary dog. It only becomes scary when the owner abuses, mistreats and doesn't give the attention that is due to the dog eg: garage owners who mistreat the Rottweilers and leave it to guard the yard!

They are big guard dogs but they think they are tiny lap dogs when they are with their owners (contrary to Jack Russells)! They are very loving, friendly family dogs if trained properly and given due attention!

Aimei and a Collie. She likes dogs but she's afraid of them. Note the uncomfortable distance and the semi-touch of the dog.

Me and the Collie smelling my cologne... hahaha

Collies are famous because of Lassie the dog in that show of the same title! Thay are intelligent, strong and graceful! They are wonderful with kids!

Me and this huge wolf grey in colour German Shepherd or an overgrown Siberian Husky (I'm not sure... zng and I are still contemplating). Really big.

The owner is this really petite lady but the dog is like half her height. I like this dog. It's very intelligent and protective! It can send shudders down the spine of any criminal and yet be very affectionate to children the next! They are often used as Police dogs. I have a friend who owns one... Simply awesome!

If it's a Siberian, then, it's distinct attribute would be it's very wolf- like features and coat. It's highly energetic and is a working dog used to pull sledges for transportation!

As for now, it's still an open discussion on whether it's a German or a Siberian! Dog experts, anybody?

As for me, we have a family dog as well; a Miniature Shnauzer! No pictures available at the moment. When I do go back, it'll be up!

Schnauzers are intelligent, loyal, protective and sociable. They are sturdy and quite muscular! They are however a little 'vocal' sometimes but that makes them great watchdogs. Mine's called Pepper due to her 'salt & pepper' fur coat shade!

So now you know a little bit more about dogs and have furthered your knowledge on the animal kingdom!

I hope that by the end of this post, you will be a dog lover! Save the planet, save the animals!

Smooch a pooch...!

Skimming

2008-08-21T03:01:00.000-07:00

When I was in Penang, behind the famous (because I was staying there... hahaha) Naza Hotel, the 2nd International Penang Skimboarding Competititon was on. Now, I know that many of you are probably hearing about this sport for the first time so let me try to explain this sport to you.

Unlike surfing, skimboarding doesn't require you to swim into the sea and catch this huge wave (which you can't really find in Malaysia for my non Malaysian and non Singaporean readers... hahaha - broadening the readership people, broadening the readership! We will take over the world one day! Muahahahaha).

Skimboarding (or skimming) is a boardsport which involves riding a board on an outgoing wave.

So how does it go? Unlike surfing , skimboarding starts on the beach. The skimboarder stands within running distance from the point of entry into the water with the skimboard in hand and waits for a wave. As the desired wave approaches the skimboarder runs towards the water.

These are some of the shots professionally taken during the competition:

Ok, now for some of the shots I took with my Cyber Shot from my k770i. Hahaha. Sorry, the pics won't be as good. I couldn't possibly go in too close to the skimboarders. I had no pass! Hahaha.

Hahaha. Better stop embarassing myself with this mindless comparison between a pro cameraman with a pass and a good camera and an amateur with no pass and a camera phone.

Ok. Here's some videos that I will attempt to upload for the first time:

Sorry, this is the best that I could do! Oh yeah, did I mention that a Channel [V] vj was in the same hotel as me? Yeah, a Channel [V] vj was living in the same hotel as me! didn't make a big deal out of it anyways!

So there you have it; an explaination on why you see some of the guys carrying a board in Malaysian and Singaporean beaches when obviously there's no surf to ride on... they are actually skimming! *Light bulb * light bulb

Of Graduations & Weddings

2008-08-18T09:17:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm back from Penang, I have got to let you know what went down in that time! I am gonna talk lesser today... More pics, less talk! Sleep is already calling unto me!

Friday morning in Penang was hectic. We woke up super early to get ourselves to USM in time. It felt great being among so many university students again... I felt young (A lot of people said I look younger than my brother... hahaha)! Thus, my job for the day started: driver, photographer, florist, delivery boy, drink holder, socialite... and the list goes on! Hahaha. (Not complaining bro... Proud to be those; proud of you!)

Before graduation ceremony

After graduation ceremony... Ta-da... now he has flowers!

In between the top two pics is a story of its own. I was actually hanging out in a lecture room where you can watch the graduation live! That's way better than UTM who leaves the rest of the family members under tentage, sweating away! However, I still slept off after it was my brother's turn!

I was totally bored and restless!

Here, you can actually see Ultraman and Spongebob floating in the air.

The only shot we took at my bro's graduation! Even for this, I'm still the cameraman!

My bro's best buds (BFF)! Hahaha... sounds so girly!

We had a graduation dinner after that!

Didn't bother to take any proper pics of the dinner... too hungry, too tired~So it's only my drink; Vanilla Milk Shake.

Once graduation day was over, the next day, we had to rush down to a very close friend's wedding, none other than Anand's and Atchra's!

Bride & Groom

Going through the wedding ceremony

Presenting: Mr. & Mrs. Anand

Looking stunning in traditional Punjabi costume!

Us and the newly weds!

The guys: Spot the odd one out...

The gals: Dot's head looks like it's detached from her body and honestly... I don't know what Mei Ching's doing (the one in baby blue dress)

Sharing a light moment with Lil' Jared

Anil's (Anand's brother's) college mates. We had an amazing dinner time. We hit it off the first time. Great company! Couldn't have asked for better dinner mates!

An amazing candid shot. It really captured the moment!

This is where everybody is well behaved! Hahaha!

This is something we discovered in the hall (Courtesy of Sue & Dan). Wanna take a guess what this means?

You guessed it right! Wireless Zone! Hahaha. Lost in translation!

Anyways, coming to end of my posting, I just wanna congratulate my bro on his graduation! Fantastic job, bro! The world awaits your deposit into this generation!

For the newly weds, Anand & Atch, have a loving and blessed marriage all the days of your life! Be fruitful and multiply! Hahaha!

(Wedding pics courtesy of Sue... Thanks!)

Treasure Hunters

2008-08-14T09:39:00.000-07:00

Now that the whole birthday thingy is over, reality has kicked in... hahaha. I'm now in Penang for my brother's graduation. I started my journey on Wednesday morning. The whole day was spent driving...

(drove until the steering wheel cover also torn)

driving... (with a slightly better view)

and... driving (picture paints a thousand words... hahaha)

We broke journey in Taiping in my aunt's place to meet up with my beloved grandma. She had a fall earlier this year and had to go through an operation. She was in Kluang with my mum for some time before she moved in together with my aunt for a couple of months. I missed my grandma a lot. She's awesome!

My grandma has a tattoo... check it out! See the green markings on her hand? That is an old school tattoo! They are more happening than what we make them out to be. But she didn't like my latest haircut though. Hahaha. Her hair is all-white, her eyebrows are white... Snow White but we (my bro and I) aren't even close to dwarfs!

My bro and I got up on Thursday morning thirsty for an adventure... actually, more like I was thirsting for one. We decided to go check out the historical sights of Taiping since we are both historical buffs.

Our first stop: THE OLD CLOCK TOWER

Sitting at the heart of the town, this magnificent clock tower was originally built with wood and had gone through much renovation during the years.

Outside the clock tower is an old BRITISH-LIKE PHONE BOOTH which bring out the feeling like you're in London or something... hahaha.

The clock tower houses a small little office and counter for tourists (that's me...) to make queries and find out more about Taiping. So we chatted with the person in charge, En. Annuar.

We had a long chat as I asked him more about the first RAILWAY TRACKS FROM TAIPING TO PORT WELD and how do I go about getting there. Mr. Annuar then replied that the tracks no longer exist because people have removed and thrown it away to make way for development. People just didn't see the value in it!

I was a little angered with the whole thing! Port Weld-Taiping was the first railway line that ran in Malaysia. It was opened on 1 June 1885 to transport tin from Larut and other tin-rich areas to be exported through Port Weld. Imports came in from Port Weld and was sent through the trains as well. I had to study ALL of these facts to sit for my HISTORY PAPER and now they tell me that it's not there! The sleepless nights and the amount of oil burnt staying awake...! Totally nonsensical and unacceptable!

Seeing our enthusiasm and passion for history, he then hinted that if we really, really, really wanted to see part of the railway artifacts... we actually could! I got super excited. He said that it was in King Edwards school! I thanked him and immediately rushed to the school!

Being the smart and Mr. Know-it-all that I am, I reached the school, parked my car...

Only to realize that it's the wrong school!!! I was actually at ST. GEORGE'S SECONDARY SCHOOL! And they are "enemies". Hahaha! How am I supposed to know which is which. I'm not even a local. However, the school was beautiful!

Sadly, we also found a dead rat in St. George's School's drain... Hahaha!

So we asked directions and headed down to King Edward VII Secondary School. When we reached there, we rushed in and met the Asst. Principal who told us that... This ISN'T the school! We were like... "WHAT?!!"

It was actually King Edward VII Primary (2)... Can you imagine if we had gone to Primary (1) and then later told that it was actually Primary (2)? Hahaha. Anyways, our spirit were still up although I had a very hard time trying to convince my brother that it was all worth it because he wanted to badly go off to Penang already!

So we headed down to the school... King Edward VII Primary (2)!

We rushed to the office in excitement totally looking forward to this discovery that even many Taiping people didn't know about! In the office, we were met by this guy who attended to us.

When we asked him about the artifacts, he didn't even know about it! He told us that the school had no such things! Our hearts sank!

We didn't give up and continued pressing in... Thank God a lady nearby heard our conversation and noted to the man that there were some "plates" hanging at the back and that maybe we were looking for that!

The guy's response was classic. He went something like this, "Oh, besi yang gantung kat belakang tu, eh?" ("Oh, the metal that's hanging at the back, is it?") Me and my bro were staring in disbelief. Without any escort or help, we searced and finally found what we were looking for... "Part of The Lost Tracks of the Taiping-Port Weld Railway Line"!

Also serving as a carpark?!!

Feeling like treasure hunters!

This was really the highlight of the whole trip! The rest of it fails in comparison! You have got to really go and check this out if you're down in Taiping. If you're looking for something a little more different, I think this would be it!

It was fun but a little tiring so it was absolutely cool to have a room with a sea view when we reached Penang! Yippee... I love the sea!

And a bonus pic of me trying this funky pink sunglasses! Hahaha! Price tag still attached!

That's all for now! Sleep beckons me!

08.08.08

2008-08-11T20:04:00.000-07:00

Finally... I get to blog on the happenings over the weekend. I had to control myself because it was so tempting to blog along the way; that would make it a lot less fun! You know me... fun, fun, fun!

So what went down? Honestly, at the stroke of midnight, I was doing my laundry! Haha. People were saying, "It's your birthday!" Well, my answer is simple... "The laundy ain't gonna do itself, even if it's my birthday!" So there you have it, historic moment... the turn of 08.08.08... doing laundry... "Love 'em pegs!"

Well, my day was pretty much routine except for the fact that the deejays on 987fm... AM Mayhem with Dan Ong, Mr. Young and Ms. Vendetta actually "counted down" (... is that how you say it?) the historical 08.08.08 at 08.08.08 AM. Hahaha.

Funniest Deejays in the land!

Lunch was amazing! Aimei came down so we had birthday lunch at Fish & Co. She got me a SMET by Christian Audigier, L.A Street Wear! Way cool!

After work, I hit the gym, training the legs and shoulders - don't worry... no pics for this one. Hahaha.

After that, the guys (and gals), my closest buds in Singapore (like family to me in this land) brought me out for late night birthday outing they were *hinting on for so long! Hahaha... like for the whole week. Had lotsa, lotsa fun celebrating together with 'Zane whose birthday falls on the same week.

I had to hold this blowing post like for half minute due to *proffesional photo taking skills by Mayce.... Hahaha.

'Zane's turn!

i-birthday! Hahaha.

The party continues the next day at Holland V. for lunch with some more buddies. It's great to have great buddies! This one's an all-guys lunch out. Had the famous Katong Laksa and lotsa Otak. The otak's pretty good but definitely not as good as the best otak in the whole world... Muar Otak-Otak.

Great shot, Shawn! You missed half of your face! Hahaha. Shawn's supposed to be good with this kind of stuff but not everyday's Sunday so... there you have it, a "Monday" shot! Hahaha!

Better! Dan, Shawn and Ing Chuan. Hmmnn... just a thought... they all kinda look the same, right? Hahaha! Guess who sticks out like a sore thumb?!

Rina got me this awesome teddy bear with my name on it! Totally loved it! So I decided to mess with Dev, the teddy a 'lil... just a 'lil!

One's a super studious one, always going online to do research (note the phone port nearby) and the other is a rugged, nubian goat's milk drinking teddy bear; both bent to go to Thai Odyssey [a birthday present courtesy of Adrian & Mei Ching... thanks guys... you rox... (these bears have got bad grammar)]!

Also had a couple of takes together with some of the people I mentor and train. They may be young but these guys are the future; a bundle of potential waiting to be released! Watch out world, here they come!

This one's a night out at de'Bali, a new spot in town... just two weeks old with the some of the zaniest and coolest people in JB!

Didn't see the above shot coming, courtesy of Jon Zng Fendi! (Shout out to Jon Zng Fendi: Thx for the pics, bro!)

The finale of it all is definitely the best; dinner with Aimei at Chef Papa, a French restaurant. The ambience and atmosphere was amazing; the food to top it all off was great!

This is the look of satisfied customers!

All in all, it has been an amazing birthday weekend! Thanks for making it great for me guys! You are the best!

Of course, not forgetting Beijing and half of the world celebrating this momentous day together with me... thanks to all! Haha!

08.08.08 rocks!

Tea-Pen

2008-08-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was an interesting day. I was up by 6 am because I had to be at the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia for training. It was the Global Leadership & Mentoring Congress 2008; Leadership &

Service Science: A New Paradigm in Innovation.

I was there by 8 am, one of the earliest. I had a chat with some colleagues before I sat at my comfortable spot by the corner (for leg space... I'm quite tall... hahaha) quite close to the front.

This year's line up of speakers includes a host of luminaries which include K.P. Ho (Chairman, MediaCorp), Chua Sock Koong (Group CEO, SingTel), Y.Y. Wong (Founder & Chairman, Wywy Group), Philip Ng (CEO, Far East Org) and Peter Kok (M.D., Key Clients UBS). I thoroughly enjoyed Y.Y. Wong and Peter Kok's insights into leadership. I missed out on K.P. Ho's key note address the day before. I heard that it was also awesome.

Some of the hotly debated issues on leadership were discussed freely; Leadership: Nurture or Nature was just one of the examples. So what do you think?

Leadership: Is it determined by DNA and your make-up or is it something that can be nurtured?

Are leaders born or made?

Let me know what you think! Drop a comment at the Comment box NOT the CBOX. Hahaha. I've gotta let you guys know beforehand or else you guys always have a leaning towards doing the absurd... lunacy... tsk, tsk like dropping a 500 word comment on the cbox. Hahaha. Do drop a comment on what you think ok! It'll be great to know what's on your mind!

After hearing everybody speak, I was convinced that there were definitely a lot of nuggets of wisdom to be brought back and pondered upon!

Well, I didn't really take much pics of the event; felt a little awkward snapping. So the only shot I had inspired the title for this post: Tea-Pen

Hahaha. Enjoy a cuppa English Breakfast Tea; nothing beats it in the morning!

A Star To The Stars

2008-08-02T10:11:00.000-07:00

Running after your dreams can be quite challenging sometimes. I realized that we are quite afraid of our own dreams. It's great having them but the challenge is being the person that would make the dream come to pass. I have these great dreams of doing great things; leaving a mark on earth in my lifetime, but sometimes my heart palpitates, my hands tremble just at the thought of it.

I tried writing down one of those dreams/ambitions the other day. Just the thought of it, and it felt as if my heart was going to jump off the middle of my thorax. Funny how we are sometimes so afraid of such things.

Maybe because we can't really see with our eyes; our future. That's why we are so afraid. It's like walking in a pitch black forest. I was reminded of this time when I went jungle trekking in my uni days as part of a leadership training camp. It was at night and everything was pitch black (what do you expect... hahaha)! They dropped us off at various points in the jungle to be in solitude. Crazy! I didn't feel solace at all. I felt as if there were like a million pairs of eyes watching me. It felt as if there were a pair of eyes from the tree, above the tree, below the tree and everywhere else 'cause i was surrounded by trees.

It was quite a scary experience because all I could do was grope around in the dark. Can you imagine groping around and discovering that another hand is groping your hand?... gulp. Shudder. Shudder.

All I did was just tell myself that it was just another exercise and that I'm going to be fine! True enough... I'm alive and blogging! You just got to see beyond the current situations and know that things are gonna be great!

So why this mad, random rambling? I just found out that this little girl (my friend's sis) whom I use to help out is now playing basketball in an open championship. She used to come to me when she was still 5 or 6 and ask me to teach her to shoot hoops. I don't think I did much except to just help her dribble the ball around and 'layan' a little girl. The fact of the matter is that now, she's playing bball for real! It made my day!

It got me thinking... maybe that's how you leave a mark on earth in your lifetime! Help others become stars in their own right. By doing that, you become a star. Better put; a star to the stars!

Training

2008-07-31T11:00:00.000-07:00

It's the month of August and I'm now down to 5 more months to achieve the goals I've set out with in January. Time is running out... Tick, tock, tick, tock...

Generally, everything is in it's place. I just need to buck up on my fitness side. I'm supposed to hit 90 kg by Oct. The last time I checked, it was 81 kg. That's crazy if you start thinking of it.

Just two years ago, I was only 60 kg. Hahaha. Now, I'm actually 81 kg... craziness!

I mean, I could just do my cardio now and be lean but I'll look too skinny. End up looking like those Korean actors in "The Fate"; they are lean, can see abs but too thin la!

The above isn't really what's on my mind!

To hit my target, I'm doing a total revamp on my workout plan to break the plateau and start gaining greater muscle mass. Now, I know what some of you might be thinking, "Dev, you're gonna be so beefy!" Fret not my friends! I'm only gonna be 90 kg for a short while. Once I have enough mass, the "cutting" period starts!

Hopefully, if all goes well, I should be at my optimum by Jan 2009! Looking something like:

Ok... my pic's way too small, I know! But I just want you to stretch your imagination a little bit. Hahaha.

Three Quarter way there already. Just a little more tweaking and fine-tuning!

Where Have All the Cartoons Gone?

2008-07-30T02:29:00.000-07:00

I had this nagging thought today... Cartoons. I don't know why. Since this is a matter of extreme importance, i have decided to write about... you guessed it... Cartoons!

I grew up with the sickest cartoons, man! Kids may be going crazy about Barney, the Purple Dino and stuff but nothing, and i mean nothing beats (in no particular order):

#1: THUNDERCATS

You gotta know this one! The legendary Lion-O with the Sword of Omens and the famous cry: (together now...) "Thunder, thunder, thunder... thundercats!" With an array of warriors - Tygra (it's the tiger if you're still thinking...), Panthro (by now if you still can't get it... Panther... it's the panther), Cheetara (the cheetah - the only female warrior) and WilyKat & WilyKit (the mischiveous... you got it right, Wildcats)! Together they battle Mumm-Ra, the evil mummy-like sorcerer!

#2: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES

The cartoon ok, NOT the Movie! The movie was horrendous!

See the difference? Hahaha! The movie Turtles look totally 'ham sap"! Something is really wrong with their teeth.

Leonardo - Raphael - Michelangelo - Donatello - My fav? Definitely Leonardo and Michelangelo!

I actually had a pair of Ninja Turtles' shoes with a Leonardo print by the side. My prized shoes; wore it wherever I went. Move aside Nike, the Turtle are here! Cowabanga dude!

#3: SILVERHAWKS

I really don't know how many of you remember this one! But i had the t-shirt. Hahaha! Silverhawks t-shirt... wore it all the time with my Ninja Turtle shoes. Fashion statement at 6!

Quicksilver and his metal bird, TallyHawk! Oh yeah!

The next one isn't really a cartoon... cartoon... but this has to go down as one of the classics!

#4: SESAME STREET

No better way to learn to count than to learn with Count! One (thunder, lightning bolt...), two (thunder, lightning bolt...). Hahaha. And counting cookies with Cookie Monster!

#4: SATRIA BAJA HITAM & GABAN

Definitely not cartoon... cartoon... but worth the watch nevertheless!

These jokers are really jokers! Just take a look at them! I don't know why i liked them so much also. Sigh... The price of growing up! Baja Hitam rides a Suzuki bike (Really..., it's a Suzuki... I checked) from his secret hideout all the way to the scene of the crime! You gotta be kidding me, right? On a Suzuki bike??!! And he's never late! Hahaha! Kopak la. But very enjoyable... hahaha.

The point is this: WHERE HAVE ALL THE CARTOONS GONE?

Barney, please move aside! Make way for the REAL Cartoons.

Lonely Cat

2008-07-28T02:37:00.000-07:00

Let me introduce you to Lonely Cat. It is the lone surviving cat on Orchard Road (the first cat i saw on Orchard Road actually, near Heeren).

FAQs about this picture:

Q: Why is the cat so small?

A: How big do you expect a cat to be, Huh? FYI... the cat or felis catus, better known as the house or domestic cat has an average weight of 4kg. An overweight cat has known to reach 23 kg due to excessive eating. For anorexic cats with deep issues in life, they are known to weigh less than 1.8 kg.

Q: But Dev, why is the cat so small?

A: (Somebody's really gonna get hurt) Sigh... But due to my grace and mercy, let me explain this to you! For dramatization purposes, i need to show that this cat (the only cat on Orchard Road) is really lonely!

Q: I don't mean to be irritating, Dev... but why is the cat so small?

A: Hey, let me tell you this: you are irritating me ok! Ok... Ok... Ok... You win. I'll tell you why. Everytime i got close to the cat, it kept going further away! Quite hard to get a proper shot! There you have it! Happy? I'm not a cat magnet ok... I'm just a chick magnet... Oh yeah!

Now that the air is clear on all your doubts and we are on the same page, let me get to my point!

The point is this: Sometimes in life, you can get lost and alone even in a crowd. But the fact of the matter is: you may be alone but you are never lonely 'coz you've got ME!!! Yup, that's right! You've got me as a friend... Awwww! (Let me throw in another cat pic... to get the point across)

See...? We are buddies! Yup. Me, the Writer, and You, the Reader! Yah, you! We have a special connection that no one can take away... chemistry! Sizzle, sizzle!

As for Lonely Cat, i guess life must have went on... shopping, eating... doing whatever cats do!

But for us... here's to us and to our unique friendship!

Disclaimer: No cats were injured or hurt in the process of blogging!

Hedbanz

2008-07-24T20:59:00.000-07:00

There's a new game that has just hit town (at least, my side of of town)... Headbanz! Well, to tell you the truth, it's not so new. It's new because I just discovered it recently. Bought the game for a steal, collected dust on my shelf for one and a half months before I actually decided to play it! It's really simple to play...!

You tie the headband around your (guess where...?) HEAD! You will feel silly for about 3 secs...( 1...2...3...). After that, you won't feel silly anymore, you only look silly! But hey, the things we would do for the sake of having fun!

Grab a card, ask questions that require yes/no answers only to guess who/what/where you are in ONE minute. It is as simple as that! If you can't get it right the first time around, you wait till it's your turn again! Simple and lots of fun!

BEWARE of people who are only all out to confuse you! Hahaha! It's loads of fun! You should try it!

Champion in this game: I would like to say it's me but I'm not! Sue is the resident champion. Despite my posting on the MSN conversations, she's still the champion. Hahaha.

Must have people: People who are loud (to the power of 100) and with big actions. For us it was Aimei. Hahaha!

Beware of: People who are extremely confusing and all out to bring you on a wild goose chase! For us, it was none other than Dan (kutuk and confuse - that's his tactics).

Have a great weekend!

My MSN Conversations with Sue

2008-07-22T20:42:00.000-07:00

I always thought that my conversations on MSN with Sue were ridiculuous and absolutely a no-brainer... like most entertainment! So enjoy... Conversations with the Whale!

sue says:
hey dev,
sue says:
can u type properly now?
Dev says:
ThisIsBadMan
sue says:
har?
sue says:
i tot huey bought a keyboard for u already?
Dev says:
MeAndComputerStuffCan'tGetAlong
Dev says:
da1SheboughtMeAlsoBad
sue says:
?
sue says:
i think its not keyboard..
sue says:
maybe its ur setting
Dev says:
Oh really... you think so... Miss Smarty Pants? what if i was just pulling ur legs?
sue says:
hey
sue says:
u r mean
sue says:
=/
Dev says:
Hahahah
sue says:
roar..
Dev says:
i'm the best at what i do
sue says:
con - man
sue says:
=P
Dev says:
con-man? What a -ve image and perspective of me... i'm just a very witty and sly person
Dev says:
very foxy
Dev says:
shrewd
sue says:
hahaha
sue says:
means conclusion
sue says:
con man
sue says:
hahaha
Dev says:
if u hv this sort of -ve image about me, ething i say to u in the future will be filtered in ur eyes as lies
Dev says:
very detrimental in our friendship
sue says:
hahaha
sue says:
my goodness
sue says:
hahaha
sue says:
hiya ok lo
sue says:
pro-man
sue says:
hahahahaaha
Dev says:
maybe.... u should just think of me as an even smarter smarty pants or simply just very playful... that would suffice
Dev says:
but isn't it good to have me back?
sue says:
haha
sue says:
remember time u got us to chia u makan seafood?
sue says:
hahahha
Dev says:
let's give Sue a big hand for arranging for the keyboard and Huey for getting it
sue says:
eh con us again la..i wanna makan seafood
sue says:
hahahaah
Dev says:
ya...wat about it? still bitter? still keeping the receipt?
sue says:
no
sue says:
haha i jus wanna eat seafood again
sue says:
but i only can eat sotong n fish
sue says:
haha rest u makan.
sue says:
ok
sue says:
np
Dev says:
why not just safe me the hassle of trying to con u and straight away just belanja me. won't that be easier?
sue says:
haha yes that will be easier
Dev says:
i look good, u look good... everybody is happy.
sue says:
ahaaha
Dev says:
no ill feelings
sue says:
funny la
Dev says:
i know
Dev says:
i'm quite a funny person
sue says:
should blog about it
sue says:
html ah..
Dev says:
that's why i need a blog... exactly
sue says:
i duno how to do =/
sue says:
but i heard its easy
Dev says:
every passing day, my enthusiasm seems to be waning
sue says:
dont dont
sue says:
dont..
sue says:
ur blog can jus cut n paste ur conversations on msn
sue says:
entertaining enuf to start
Dev says:
maybe i should do that.
Dev says:
i'll do it now
sue says:
wad~ not this conversation?

So there you have it! Conversations with a Whale. Free Willy!