the lone gunman muses

Buku oh buku, knaper aku x cukup $$?

2009-05-25T11:14:00.002+08:00

Everytime i go to Kinokuniya (Kino for short), i have this feeling of anticipation and dread.

Anticipation because of the likely possible treasures i would find inside, but at the same time dread because either

1) an unexpected treasure trove of a book is found
2) a long awaited book which i have been hunting high & low is discovered
3) said item (or items) is wayyyy over-priced or lately
4) not enough $$ due to LATE SALARY (&*(&#$^$)

Jus yesterday, mosied to Kino with the INTENTION to browse; lo and behold after an intentional long refusal to visit due to unbearable

Possible temptations to buy, i found some treasures which i had been waiting for like forever (and perhaps long given up for lost) to buy, er i meant browse...see what i mean?

Dah la said item was on the to purchase list for the longest, gazillionth time being put off for so many reasons, tetibe its there pulak. Haihzz...why la now?

So after deciding for some time (and summore before, after and during said period of time) just went ahead and bought 1 book. Yes, just 1 (First World War by Martin Gilbert). Been waiting for a year plus to get this & wouldn't want to waste the opportunity now.

The rest of the bunch, including the long awaited & sought after Retribution, also by Martin Gilbert shall have to wait till the bank vault is replenished with $$ which hopefully is soooooooon (hint hint).

Let me reemphasise that again, soooooooon!

Oh by the way, Angels and Demons is jus so-so, Night at the Museum 2 is stupid but funny, while Sellout was funny but could do wit a better ending. Chowzz..

Wesak Day

2009-05-11T09:41:00.003+08:00

Saturday, 9th May was Wesak. Its the best time to go to malls or other leisure-seeking joints as its the only time it won't be full of gadzillion people! its true.

When i went to 1Utama early in the afternoon to catch the latest Star Trek remake film, i expected the usual packed crowds only to find only so-so groups here & there. Queue was only 10-12 people long so it was a breezy time.

The only hang up was the queue to buy snacks & drinks which took nearly 20 minutes bcos foreigners ALWAYS take their sweet time deciding, ordering, then changing their minds. Aiyoo, make up la your mind BEFORE you reach the counter la kan? Ini pulak, still umm's, ahhs & i dunnos.... &*$(&*(#&(@&

so the moral of the story is; if u wanna have a great, crowd free weekend go during Wesak (preferably mornings up till mid afternoons). Thats all folks!

VE Day

2009-05-11T09:30:00.002+08:00

On the 8th of May 2009, we commemorate the 64th anniversary of the end of World War 2 in Europe. It will be four months before the Japanese formally surrender on September 2nd 1945.

For more information : End of World War Two in Europe

i got number 7

2009-04-01T11:15:00.004+08:00

Check this out:

http://www.astrology-numerology.com/num-lifepath.html

I ended up with the figure 7.

Wow, it was pretty accurate. Thanks Hana! ^_^

how long more have to wait? not urgent enough or bribe not enough?

2009-03-19T14:08:00.001+08:00

NST : 2009/03/19

SOS for another 'Elizabeth'

By : Roy Goh

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah's dire need for a new hospital is well acknowledged by the government at both the state and federal levels.

Proposals have surfaced but nothing concrete has come out of them and the people of Sabah continue to be deprived of adequate medical services.

Medical services in the state have long been below par and it took a further blow last October.

The Tower Block at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Complex, the "heartbeat" of the state's medical and healthcare service, was declared unsafe and has since been vacated.

The block had 250 beds, eight surgery rooms, an intensive care ward, a radiology services unit, a pharmacy and a forensics unit, among others.
Other units in the hospital remain operational but the tower's closure has created a major void in services, to the extent that patients have had to be transferred to hospitals in nearby districts.

There has been a proposal for the construction of a new hospital, with the state government offering the Federal Government land for the purpose.

This, however, would only fit into a long-term plan and the state's medical and healthcare problem would not be able to wait that long, said a doctor at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital who declined to be named.

There has also been talk that the Health Ministry plans to purchase a private hospital, the Sabah Medical Centre (SMC), as well as acquire a vacant building, Wisma Khidmat, he added.

The proposal to acquire the SMC may cost RM460 million. As for Wisma Khidmat, it is likely to be cheaper.

At present, the SMC provides top-of- the-line facilities, including 460 beds and a cardiotherapy centre, a facility which the state never had although there were plans to build one at a cost of RM300 million.

"We could save on building a new cardiotherapy centre by acquiring the SMC," said the doctor.

Heart patients are currently referred to the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur.

"The cost of transporting a patient on a stretcher is the equivalent of 12 return airline tickets.

"Imagine how much can be saved if we had our own cardiotherapy centre."

The state government holds a 20 per cent stake in the SMC.

PEKING LAUNDRY

2009-03-18T14:35:00.001+08:00

kena taggie by encik eri, so 'ere goes...

RULES:
1. Put your iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. on shuffle mode.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. You must write that song’s name down NO MATTER HOW SILLY it sounds.
4. Put any comments in brackets after the song’s name.
5. Put this on your journal/blog.

1. If someone says, “Is this okay?”… you say?
Once - Dealova (maybe, haha)

2. How would you describe yourself?
David Archuleta - Crush (haha, maybe)

3. What do you like in a girl?
Jimmy Eat World - Last Christmas (sounds nice!)

4. How do you feel today?
Eve 6 - Here's to the night (yea man)

5. What is your life’s purpose?
Sawano Hiroyuki - Gigantic Formula Main Theme (inspiring, nice)

6. What is your motto?
Everclear - Heartspark Dollarsign (yup, betol2)

7. What do your friends think of you?
Billy Gilman - Angels we have heard on high (^_^)

8. What do you think of your parents?
Dewi 19 - Dewi (love smiley from spark)

9. What do you think about very often?
Brian Tyler - Rambo 4 Theme (haah, betol2...prophetic lol)

10. What is 2 + 2?
Sum41 - Pieces (eh, betol lar)

11. What do you think of your best friend?
Tiesto - Club Life 099 (not really...)

12. What do you think of the person you like?
Velvet Revolver - Slither (f**k yea!)

13. What is your life story?
Dewa 19 - Cinta tertinggal di Malaysia (haah, rite2)

14. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Mr Big - Shine (luv smiley from spark)

15. What do you think of when you see the person you like?
HSM2 OST - Gotta go my own way (sad smiley from spark)

16. What will you dance to at your wedding?
Fuel - Bad Day (maybe, haha)

17. What will they play at your funeral?
Sawana Horoyuki - Senkou, Gigantic Formula (excellent score)

18. What is your hobby/interest?
Dewa 19 - Selimut Hati (no komen)

19. What is your biggest fear?
KRU - Untukmu (Feminin cover) (maybe...)

20. What is your biggest secret?
Cake - I will Survive (haah, betol2)

21. What do you think of your friends?
Halim Yazid - Anak Tupai (x semestinya)

22. What will you post this as?
Peking Laundry - Don't turn away (strange title but okie)

menarik jugak ni, lol!

Intentionally misleading?

2009-03-17T13:25:00.002+08:00

An example of why Malaysian newspapers shouldn't be relied upon for a good source of information:

This came out in the Berita Mutakhir section of the Berita Harian website today,

"9 askar Australia maut di Afghanistan"

CANBERRA: Ketua Pertahanan Udara Australia, Marshal Angus Houston mengesahkan sembilan askar negara itu maut dalam satu pertempuran dengan puak Taliban, hari ini.
[+] 09:07 AM

link

this is what it is written as;

CANBERRA: Ketua Pertahanan Udara Australia, Marshal Angus Houston mengesahkan sembilan askar negara itu maut dalam satu pertempuran dengan puak Taliban, hari ini.

Beliau berkata, askar itu terbunuh dalam pertempuran sengit dengan 20 Taliban di Wilayah Uruzgan.

Nama askar berkenaan tidak diumumkan.

Australia mempunyai kira-kira 1,000 askar di Afghanistan dan kejadian terakhir membabitkan askarnya terbunuh pada Januari lalu. - AFP

Thing is, this is what actually happened:

"Ninth Australian soldier dies in Afghanistan"

"Taliban insurgents have ambushed and killed an Australian soldier, the ninth to die on operations in the strife-torn country."

source

World of a difference in meaning now, eh? Considering the readership of BH comprise of a particular majority race in the country, is it possibly intentional?

'More of the heathen unbelievers bite the dust in the glorious struggle to free our lands';
or so someone in particular wants us to believe, or lead to believe. Hmm...

Which is why as i say & continually say, i quote one of my favourite sayings

"Perception of reality is more important than reality itself"

Nuff said.

new link

2009-03-10T13:46:00.002+08:00

Haven't updated in a while.

No, i haven't been bought by be-end yet. Just...uninspired.

Won't be reviewing any run of the mill film from now on. Just those which standout.

Speaking of which, Doubt was awesome. Cast was deserving of Oscar nominations and should have won at least one, Streep especially. Powerful performance, watch it if you can.

Have linked to Product of The System's blog. Well worth a read on the dejected and truly shocking state of affairs in healthcare in my home state of Sabah. My heart goes out to the poor souls who had been under the knife of those foreign doctor Mengels.

I shall do my upmost to speak up for my fellow Sabahan, thanks doc for the encouragement.

Yamato YF-19 1/60 scale is now MINE!

2008-12-01T08:59:00.014+08:00

a very long wait is finally over. took me 12 years, but i now have one.

ever since watching the Macross Plus ova wayy in 1996, i've always wanted a fully transforming toy of the super-sleek yf-19 prototype fighter.

and last Saturday, that wish has been granted. after paying the second half of the installment at Time Machine shop at times square, i resisted the urge to shout for joy.

words cannot describe how happy i am...after i got home, time was spent fiddling, transforming, displaying etc. reading the manual, watching the transformation video guide, opening cockpits..woo, very very impressed. wayy better than my broken hip vf-11..

i left mine displayed in fighter mode with the main undercarriage down, front cockpit opened, pending the acquiring of the macross base to properly display it in the flying pose.

can't stop grinning from ear-to-ear, cant help it!

thank you Yamato, thank you Time Machine for making this hardcore Macross fan's dream come true.

i'm still grinning, hehe... ^_^

pendapat bernas nk kongsi...

2008-11-26T09:58:00.002+08:00

picked this up today, gud food for thought this....

(will be deleted once the original moderators say take it off fr here)

in response to this:
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/13150-shahrir-says-malaysians-are-greedy

one of the commenters wrote this...

Shut Your Gap Shi*hir
written by Stop The Nonsense, November 25, 2008

Malaysians are not greedy. They just have stupid so called leaders. It's destructive to bring down prices quickly - destructive to whose pockets? So you mean it's fuc*ing CONSTRUCTIVE to the citizens for the fuel price to increase by 78 cents overnight???? Shut your gap if you don't have a brain to first process what you want to say. WHEN THE STUPID GOVERNMENT DOES NOT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO SPEND, THEY REDUCE OUR EPF INTEREST PAYOUT, INCREASE OUR MONTHLY TAXABLE AMOUNT AND WHATEVER NOT. SO WHEN THE GOVERNMENT CAUSES HIGH INFLATION RATES, WHERE THE HELL DO THE CITIZENS FIND THE EXTRA MONEY TO COVER THEIR EXPENSES? THE GOVERNMENT IS GOING TO INCREASE ALL OUR SALARIES?

The natural resources of this country belongs to the citizens. So how come only PETRONAS is benefiting from it and none of the citizens are enjoying any of the perks that come with the resources? Why should we be taxed on things that belong to us while only certain individuals enjoy the full benefits; including the government. If that's the case, we shouldn't be paying income tax since we're being taxed on our natural resources.

You might argue that every other country in this world impose taxes on their citizens. BUT AT LEAST THE PEOPLE OF OTHER NATIONS ENJOY FAR BETTER LIVING CONDITIONS WITH MUCH HIGHER BUYING POWER. IN CASE YOU DIDN'T REALISE, THE RINGGIT IS BECOMING RUBBISH.

I don't mind paying taxes, but WHERE THE HELL DOES ALL OUR MONEY GO TO? IF YOU SAY OUR TAX RATE IS MUCH LOWER AND OUR GOVERNMENT HAS LESS MONEY TO SPEND, HOW COME OUR MINISTERS CAN LIVE JUST AS LAVISHLY AS MINISTERS IN OTHER COUNTRIES???????????? OUR TAX MONEY CANNOT GIVE US BETTER PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION? BETTER SECURITY? THEN THE MINISTERS SHOULD STOP GOING AROUND IN BRAND NEW MERCEDES VEHICLES, LIVE IN APARTMENTS, SHOP AT HYPERMARKETS AND SO ON. IF THE LIVES OF MALAYSIAN CITIZENS ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO ENJOY ALL THESE, IT SHOULD ALSO BE THE CASE FOR THE MINISTERS SINCE WE ARE THE ONES PAYING FOR EVERYTHING THEY EARN AND OWN.

OUR DAMN BUDGET HAS TRIPLED SINCE 10 YEARS AGO. HOW MANY OF YOU OUT THERE CAN SAY THE SAME FOR YOUR SALARIES. IF THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO TRIPLE THE BUDGET IN ORDER TO 'RUN' THE COUNTRY, I DON'T KNOW WHY THE CITIZENS DO NOT NEED TRIPLE THEIR SALARIES TO SURVIVE. IT'S TIME WE STOPPED CUTTING DOWN ON WHAT WE HAVE JUST SO SOME MORONS CAN HAVE MORE.

---------

so effin true aint it?

hear ye BN voters...

2008-11-26T09:46:00.002+08:00

i'm beyond naked emotions now after going thru the morning papers about the various shennanigans 'reported' in the media.

to all ya folks who voted in Barisan in the march '08 elections, this all i got to say to you...

'YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW'

u a'll have a nice day, y' hear?

Tag Rawak

2008-10-22T15:30:00.004+08:00

ditag 'leh mr zam-zam. berikut adalah hasil nya...

1) Apa anda buat 5 tahun dahulu?

dlm pertengahan 'half-way' menghabeskan kursus ijazah mass comm (mass communication) dr LimKokWing ICT (time tu; skang LUCT). stat pertengahan 2002, abes mid 2005.

2) 2 perkara/habit yang tidak diketahui/ganjil tentang diri anda.

• orang lain sangat tak minat subjek sejarah, tapi saya sgt suka terutama nya sejarah tentera (military history). tarikh & fakta sangat mudah diterima otak saya. tak jemu menghayati sejarah pelbagai subjek, find it very fascinating & interesting. sampai saya org pertama kluar dari bilik peperiksaan kertas abeskan paper sejarah SPM, sebab laju sgt (breeze thru jer), smp dapat credit, hehe..

• walk, yes; run, no: mempunyai stamina berjalan kaki jarak jauh, tanpa penat sangat atau berpeluh berlebihan. bakat diasah sejak time skolah tingkatan, dimana saya da biasa berjalan pergi balek dr skolah & umah. sebab tu sy amat suka hiking & slalu pegi bila dpt peluang.

3) 3 tabiat buruk anda masa sekolah.

• minat lebih dr 1 awek. dlm kelas sendiri, & kat luar. hebat bukan.

• semasa menjadi pengawas waktu sgt singkat, pernah membantu rakan kelas merosak kan pokok skolah, smp kena hentam om (gelaran org tua yg berasal dr negeri timor, indonesia) tukang jaga skolah, hehe.

• main ting-tong (game arked) smp ketagih. dengan sokongan bernas sepupu baek yg menjadi sifu saya. tapi tak la smp ponteng kelas.

16 September 1963

2008-09-16T09:20:00.002+08:00

Today 45 years ago, on the 16th of September 1963, Sabah & Sarawak
joined with the Federation of Malaya to form Malaysia.

All Hail Master Chief!

2008-09-13T20:38:00.004+08:00

Halo 3 Campaign 1 Master Chief

...badass

media antics

2008-09-12T15:59:00.002+08:00

familiarity with msian newspapers have lead me to these conclusions:

1) comments

comments...they drive me up the wall. not just any comments mind you. comments from the authorities or politicians. especially if it comes from so-called ministers. then again, not really their fault.

Msian media has this habit of asking for comments whenever any issue strikes d nations fancy at the time. i know that on slow newsdays, you have to find SOMETHING to fill up the newsprint but comments? what good are they really, think about it.

a comment is just that, a comment. no real value to indicate yes or no, good or bad. its an opinion (of an individual), made as one. that means its value-less, useless as it carries no weight in an official capacity for whatever purpose be it to sanction, disprove, rectify whatsoever.

which is plain stupid in my opinion. instead of asking for comments, shouldn't you ask them for an official press release instead? with an official press release, then it carries weight simply because its an OFFICIALLY sanctioned statement, one which carries weight in a black & white YES or NO fashion. no buts, ifs & maybes.

look at the US government. do their journalists ask the US president for a comment on important & not-so-important matters? no right? why is that, hmm...think about it, because they know it carries no weight!

they wait for the officially appointed spokesman from the White house, or state department (for foreign policy) & they hammer their questions there because they know the spokesperson speaks for the president & his decisions. accountable & responsible for whatever comes of that decision.

but i guess msian government cant do that. the reason is pretty clear. decision-making & policy is so flipflop, so kneejerk reaction that whoever they appoint as the spokesperson would lose all credibility in a short time. not that i'm holding my breath that this would ever come to pass..

2) making a statement for nothing

the authorities, and politicians in particular have a habit of making useless statements to the media...for nothing. there are so many examples of this. just look at any newspaper & you'll find them.

long bombarded by them, one becomes far too quickly used to seeing them. worse is that, yr so used to seeing them, the addled brain is so numbed by the sheer idiocy that they hardly register as a useless statement.

just because you hold a press conference, and make a statement doesn't make it a fact (refer to No 1), doesnt necessarily change things (for better or worse) & doesnt necessarily make it right/legitimize whatever it was said or done.

i dont have to list them down, im pretty sure you could think of ALOT of examples.

3) in the news for the wrong reasons

way too many idiots running around, making idiots of themselves. and the press writing up about them & making us pay attention to them. and giving them useless airtime/column space. wayyy too many examples to quote.

4) if, but, could, might, maybe headlines

you get these all the time, open any newspaper... And these items count as newsworthy, worthy of appearing as frontpage material? why come out with a statement in the first place if there isnt any concrete decision/action yet.

until it comes out & implemented officially why report it & more importantly why waste our time listening to your rumour mongering? & they accuse the people of listening to rumours!

my philosopy in this regard is simple. until its OFFICIAL, dont bother.

alangkah bahagia ny...

2008-08-29T09:40:00.002+08:00

he/she/them/they/it/makhluk: jim bang jim bang / pepokpepokpepok / $^%$#^#$$**

mua: "..."

he/she/them/they/it/makhluk: JIM BANG JIM BANG / PEPOKPEPOKPEPOK / $^%$^*$*$

mua: "..."

selang beberapa masa yang tak dispesifikasi...

mua: {mutter} ....."bankai"

gashin! ton...

he/she/them/they/it/makhluk: " "

whaa...alangkah bahagia ny ^_^

kata kata bernas

2008-08-28T16:52:00.001+08:00

"Finish each day and be done with it.
You have done what you could.
Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in;
forget them as soon as you can.
Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely
and with too high a spirit to be cumbered
with your old nonsense."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

jokes i dug up... (3)

2008-08-27T10:18:00.001+08:00

A mother passing by her daughter's bedroom saw an envelope propped up prominently on the bed.

The letter read:

Dear Mum, I eloped with my new boyfriend because I wanted to avoid a scene with you and dad.

John is the love of my life.

I love all his piercings, tattoos, beard, and motorcycle clothes.

By the way, I'm pregnant.

John said that we will be very happy together.

He wants to have many more children with me.

In the meantime, we'll pray that science will find a cure for Aids so John can get better.

Don't worry Mom, I'm 15 years old now and I know how to take care of myself.

One day we'll be back to visit so you can get to know your grandchildren.

Your daughter, Judith

PS: Mum, none of the above is true. I'm over at the neighbour's house. I just wanted to remind you that there are worse things in life than my report card that's in my desk drawer. I love you! Call when it's safe for me to come home.

-----------------------------------

Three men: a philosopher, a mathematician and an idiot, were out riding in the car when it crashed into a tree.

Before anyone knows it, the three men found themselves standing before the pearly gates of Heaven, where St Peter and the Devil were standing nearby.

"Gentlemen," the Devil started, "Due to the fact that Heaven is now overcrowded, therefore St Peter has agreed to limit the number of people entering Heaven. If anyone of you can ask me a question which I don't know or cannot answer, then you're worthy enough to go to Heaven; if not, then you'll come with me to Hell."

The philosopher then stepped up, "OK, give me the most comprehensive report on Socrates' teachings," With a snap of his finger, a stack of paper appeared next to the Devil. The philosopher read it and concluded it was correct. "Then, go to Hell!" With another snap of his finger, the philosopher disappeared.

The mathematician then asked, "Give me the most complicated formula you can ever think of!" With a snap of his finger, another stack of paper appeared next to the Devil. The mathematician read it and reluctantly agreed it was correct. "Then, go to Hell!" With another snap of his finger, the mathematician disappeared, too.

The idiot then stepped forward and said, "Bring me a chair!" The Devil brought forward a chair. "Drill 7 holes on the seat." The Devil did just that. The idiot then sat on the chair and let out a very loud fart. Standing up, he asked, "Which hole did my fart come out from?"
The Devil inspected the seat and said, "The third hole from the right."

"Wrong," said the idiot, "it's from my asshole." And the idiot went to Heaven.

-----------------------------------

One day while walking down the street a highly successful executive woman was tragically hit by a bus and she died. Her soul arrived up in heaven where she was met at the Pearly Gates by St. Peter. "Welcome to Heaven," said St. Peter. "Before you get settled in though, it seems we have a problem. You see, strangely enough, we've never once had an executive make it this far and we're not really sure what to do with you." "No problem, just let me in," said the woman.

"Well, I'd like to, but I have higher orders. What we're going to do is let you have a day in Hell and a day in Heaven and then you can choose whichever one you want to spend an eternity in." "Actually, I think I've made up my mind...I prefer to stay in Heaven," said the woman. "Sorry, we have rules..." And with that St. Peter put the executive in an elevator and it went down to hell.

The doors opened and she found herself stepping out onto the putting green of a beautiful golf course. In the distance was a country club and standing in front of her were all of her friends and they were all dressed in fine evening wear and cheering for her. They ran up and kissed her on both cheeks and they talked about old times. They played an excellent round of golf and at night went to the country club where she enjoyed an excellent steak and lobster dinner. She met the Devil who was actually a really nice guy and she had a great time telling jokes and dancing. She was having such a good time that before she knew it, it was time to leave. Everybody shook her hand and waved good-bye as she got on the elevator. The elevator went back up to the Pearly Gates and found St. Peter.

"Now it's time to spend a day in heaven," he said.
So she spent the next 24 hours lounging around on clouds and playing the harp and singing. She had a great time and before she knew it her 24 hours were up and St. Peter came and got her. "So, you've spent a day in hell and you've spent a day in heaven. Now you must choose your eternity," he said.

The woman paused for a second and then replied, "Well, I never thought I'd say this, I mean, Heaven has been really great and all, but I think I had a better time in Hell." So St. Peter escorted her to the elevator and again she went back to Hell.

When the doors of the elevator opened she found herself standing in a desolate wasteland covered in garbage and filth. She saw her friends were dressed in rags and were picking up the garbage and putting it in sacks. The Devil came up to her and put his arm around her. "I don't understand," stammered the woman,"yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and a country club and we ate lobster and we danced and had a great time. Now all there is a wasteland of garbage and all my friends look miserable."

The Devil looked at her and smiled. "Yesterday we were recruiting you. Today you're staff."

weekend movie roundup

2008-08-18T11:11:00.001+08:00

1) Mirrors

intriguing first half , but lost it half way through. they turned what could have been an interesting contest of wills between the hero & demon into a fistfight; PLUS including the obigatory hollywood explosion. what a disappointment, which the twist ending nonetheless sadly failed to save. 2.5/5

2) Wall-e

no one else but Pixar could have made us root for, and emphatically make us believe that two robots could fall in love. as much a cautionary tale as am electronic love story, this film works on many levels as only a Disney/Pixar collaboration can successfully pull off.

the ending conveniently left off what will happen to the original space-service droids + wall-e once humankind returns to rebuilding human civilization once again; as the ever-evolving technologically adept man develops newer and advanced models, what becomes of the older, redundant but still sentient droids?

as the master computer Auto did, would they not want to continue to live on instead of willfully powering down to 'serve' mankind better? ah, shades of The Second Renaissance ;) 4.5/5

3) Star Wars: The Clone Wars

fun, action-packed story but it won't advance the Star Wars storyline much (make that at all). basically an extended, cgi-fied tv episode, this'll make star wars fans swoon, give ordinary cinemagoers one half-hour plus of mindless entertainment & nothing much else. the only reason i watched it was to see more footage of the clone troopers & the walkers (my fav part in the star wars universe) in action. 3/5

Bali in photos

2008-08-13T13:09:00.015+08:00

kung-fu fighting at GWK monument

white water rafting on the Ayung River

monkeying around

cold & freezing our a** off

raiders of the lost ark...not! abandoned resort
on the other side of Lake Bratan, Bedugul

ginormous komodo dragons contemplating
lunch at Monkey Forest, Ubud

me terrified of the humongous Garuda-zilla

fishing for Jaws off Lovina beach

Tanah Lot

me 'surfing' ^_^

Kuta beach

Ronnie surfing

jokes i dug up... (2)

2008-08-06T16:08:00.002+08:00

On a flight to Chicago, a gentleman had made several attempts to get into the men's rest-room, but it had always been occupied. The flight attendant noticed his predicament.

Sir, she said, "You may use the ladies room if you promise not to touch any of the buttons on the wall."

He did what he needed to, and as he sat there he noticed the buttons he had promised not to touch!

Each button was identified by letters WW, WA, PP, and a red one labelled ATR.

Who would know if he touched them? He couldn't resist.

He pushed WW. Warm water was sprayed gently upon his bottom.

What a nice feeling, he thought.

Men's rest-rooms don't have nice things like this.

Anticipating greater pleasure, he pushed the WA button.

Warm air replaced the warm water, gently drying his underside.

When this stopped, he pushed the PP button.

A large! Powder Puff caressed his bottom adding a fragile scent of spring flowers to this unbelievable pleasure.

The ladies rest-room was more than just a rest-room, it is a tender and loving pleasure.

When the powder puff completed its pleasure, he couldn't wait to push the ATR button which he knew would be supreme ecstasy.

The Next thing he knew he was in a hospital, as soon as he opened his eyes. A nurse was staring down at him with a smirk on her face.

"What happened?" he exclaimed.

"You pushed one too many buttons,"replied the nurse. "The last button marked ATR was an Automatic Tampon Remover.

Your dick is under your pillow."

Men Never Listen.......

-------------------------------
JOKE NO 2

An older lady gets pulled over for speeding…

Older Woman : Is there a problem, Officer ?

Officer: Ma’am, you were speeding.

Older Woman:Oh, I see.

Officer: Can I see your license please ?

Older Woman: I’d give it to you but I don’t have one.

Officer: Don’t have one ?

Older Woman: Lost it, 4 years ago for drunk driving.

Officer: I see…Can I see your vehicle registration papers
please.

Older Woman: I can’t do that.

Officer: Why not?

Older Woman: I stole this car.

Officer: Stole it?

Older Woman: Yes, and I killed and hacked up the owner.

Officer:You what?

Older Woman: His body parts are in plastic bags in the trunk if you want to see.

The Officer looks at the woman and slowly backs away to his car and calls for back up.Within minutes 5 police cars circle the car.A senior officer slowly approaches the car, clasping his half drawn gun.

Officer 2:Ma’am, could you step out of your vehicle please! The woman steps out of her vehicle.

Older Woman: Is there a problem sir?

Officer 2: One of my officers told me that you have stolen this car and murdered the owner.

Older Woman: Murdered the owner?

Officer 2: Yes, could you please open the trunk of your car, please.

The woman opens the trunk, revealing nothing but an empty trunk.

Officer 2: Is this your car, ma’am?

Older Woman: Yes, here are the registration papers. The officer is quite stunned.

Officer 2:One of my officers claims that you do not have a driving license.

The woman digs into her handbag and pulls out a clutch purse and hands it to the officer.
The officer examines the license. He looks quite puzzled.

Officer 2: Thank you ma’am, one of my officers told me you didn’t have a license, that you stole this car, and that you murdered and hacked up the owner.

Older Woman: Bet the liar told you I was speeding too.

Bali Travelogue

2008-08-01T16:32:00.002+08:00

came back from Bali, island of the gods. was there from the 18th till the 26th of july.

9 blissful (sort of) days of road-tripping, eating, sightseeing & the occasional shopping spree. wanted to buy more but was operating on a severely restricted budget which unfortunately ran out 2/3's of the way, so i resorted to IOUs from sis & her husband.

PROs:
• A-mazing sights. Bali truly offers tonnes of things to see & do. with a bigger budget, one can do nearly everything. where else can you find one island - beaches (white & black sand), multiple highland(!) lakes, beautiful cliff views (Uluwatu & Tanah Lot), mountains, monuments. u name it, they (likely) have it.
• Best budget travel destination; your RM will travel far here. plan well & you will be amply rewarded. renting a car & going on a roadtrip is most recommended, as you can experience more & travel more freely as opposed to highly structured tours.
• Excellent photographic opportunities abound. looking at a picture really isn't the same as being there. Bali has to be experienced to be memorable.
• Kecak fire dance at clifftop amphitheatre, Uluwatu. Gorgeous backdrop, incredible dance (if a little modernized)
• white water rafting at Ayung river, via Sobek.

CONS:
• songeh-ness from a certain someone who very nearly spoiled everything for me.
• persistent hawkers who dont know how to take ONE no for an answer.
• sleep would have been blissful if it wasn't for the persistent snoring of someone, ensuring that nights were frequently noisy, sleep-less affairs.

pics will be uploaded later, when i get my hands on d digicam shots from mum's & sis' cameras in 1 weeks time. am flyin back to attend my cuz's wedding during the weekend.

Google Tag FTW

2008-07-16T10:42:00.003+08:00

tagged by mr zamzam alakazam

Rule:
Go to Google and search the phrase.
Please include the double quotation marks “...”
Tag friends. Please use your REAL 1st name.
Use the first thing that comes up that makes sense.

Q: Type in “[your name] needs” in the Google search: “Raymond needs”
A: "Raymond needs you." aww

Q: Type in “[your name] looks like” in Google search: “Raymond looks like”
A: "Raymond looks like the man I ran over; he is muscular and blond." i am neither

Q: Type in “[your name] says” in Google search: “Raymond says”
A: "Eric Raymond says he's just about had it with Microsoft - The INQUIRER." you said it

Q: Type in “[your name] wants” in Google search: “Raymond wants”
A: "Raymond Wants A Juliet - Nairaland" damn straight!

Q: Type in “[your name] does” in Google search: “Raymond does”
A: "Raymond does the zaza" wats a zaza??!!

Q: Type in “[your name] hates” in Google search: “Raymond hates”
A: "Raymond hates the sea and aeroplanes." impossible, i love both of them

Q: Type in “[your name] asks” in Google search: “Raymond asks”
A: "Raymond asks locals to march for education" yeah, thats more like it!

Q: Type in “[your name] goes” in Google search: “Raymond goes”
A: "Raymond goes back to basics" as always

Q: Type in “[your name] likes ” in Google search: “Raymond likes”
A: "Raymond Likes A Plump Wife" he** nooooo!!!

Q: Type in “[your name] eats ” in Google search: “Raymond eats”
A: "Raymond eats shit on his skate!" err, doesn't sound very appealing..euwww

Q: Type in “[your name] wears ” in Google search: “Raymond wears”
A: "Raymond wears a hawaiian shirt and baseball cap and pretends to be Magnum, PI" yeaa!

Q: Type in “[your name] was arrested for” in Google Search: “Raymond was arrested for”
A: "Raymond was arrested for unlawful possession of alcohol and facilitating an underage drug/alcohol house party." yeax222!!

Code Geass R2

2008-07-15T15:19:00.010+08:00

right now, my no 1 ranked anime show in my watch-list (followed by Macross Frontier and Bleach). jus like the first season with its over-the-top twists and turns, the current second season (called R2) doesn't dissappoint, in this hardcore geass fan's opinion.

halfway thru, and we've already seen some pretty startling revealations unveiled so we can only expect more. what i really like about this show is how ambiguous they make Lelouch's motivation, actions & reactions; from the start we already knew how far he was willing to go, but to do all sorts of dastardly tricks, escapes & counterstrikes is awesome. this is one show where in nearly episode i'd go "wow" or "whoah, cool!".

Sunrise had definitely pulled out all the stops in making the action and especially the combat scenes between Knightmares awesome. even tho macross f's got some cool vf's innem, but they dont act, i dunno, 'real' enuf? compared to say the vf's in macross plus (my all time fav macross dogfight show).

plus, geass op's are always awesome to watch (loved all the ops!).

here's the R2 Op2 link & see wat you're missing!

jokes i dug up...

2008-07-15T09:25:00.004+08:00

The Big Debate

Back ten centuries ago, the Pope decided that all the Muslims had to leave Jerusalem. Naturally there was a big uproar from the Muslim community. So the Pope made a deal. He would have a religious debate with a member of the Muslim community. If the Muslim won the debate, all the Muslims could stay. If the Pope won, all the Muslims would have to leave.

The Muslims realised that they had no choice. They looked around for a champion who could defend their faith, but no one wanted to volunteer. It was too risky. But they finally picked their representative, an old Mullah who unknowingly agreed without knowing what he was getting himself into. He agreed only on the condition that neither side be allowed to talk but communicate by miming. The pope agreed.

The day of the great debate came. The Mullah and the Pope sat opposite each other for a full minute before the Pope raised his hand and showed three fingers. The Mullah looked back at him and raised his middle finger.. The Pope waved his fingers in a circle around his head. Mullah Nasruddin pointed to the ground and stamped his foot.

The Pope pulled out a wafer and a glass of wine. Mullah pulled out an apple. The Pope stood up and said, 'I give up. This man is too good. The Muslims can stay.'

An hour later, the cardials were all around the Pope asking him what happened. The Pope said: "First I held up three fingers to represent the Trinity. He responded by holding up one finger to remind me that there was still one God common to both our religions. Then I waved my finger around me to show him that God was all around us. He responded by pointing to the ground and stamping on it, showing that God was also right here with us. I pulled out the wine and the wafer to show that God absolves us from our sins. He pulled out an apple, reminding me of the
first sin. He had an answer for everything. What could I do?"

Meanwhile, the Muslim community had crowded around the Mullah in total astonishmen. "What happened?" they asked. "Well,"said the Mullah, "First he said to me that we Muslims had three days to leave Jerusalem. I told him up yours. Then he told me that this whole city would be cleared of Muslims. I said none of us leaving this land!" "And then?" asked a woman.

"He took out his lunch and I took out mine," said the Mullah.

------------------------

A worker for the US Postal Service whose job it was to process all mail that had illegible addresses. One day a letter came to his desk, addressed in a shaky handwriting to God. He thought, "Oh boy, better open this one and see what it's all about."

So he opened it and read: "Dear God, I am an 83 year old widow living on a very small pension. Yesterday someone stole my purse. It had 100 dollars in it which was all the money I had until my next pension check. Next Sunday is Easter, and I had invited two of my friends over for dinner. Without that money, I have nothing to buy food with. I have no family to turn to, and you are my only hope. Can you please help me?"

The postal worker was touched, and went around showing the letter to all the others. Each of them dug into his wallet and came up with a few dollars. By the time he made the rounds, he had collected 96 dollars, which they put into an envelope and sent over to her.

The rest of the day, all the workers felt a warm glow thinking of the nice thing they had done.
Easter came and went, and a few days later came another letter from the old lady to God. All the workers gathered around while the letter was opened.

It read: "Dear God, How can I ever thank you enough for what you did for me? Because of your generosity, I was able to fix a lovely dinner for my friends. We had a very nice day, and I told my friends of your wonderful gift. By the way, there was 4 dollars missing. I think it must have been those thieving bastards at the Post Office."

weekend update

2008-07-14T16:56:00.001+08:00

attended Izrin & Marcus' wedding at Le Meridien hotel klsentral on saturday evening. anticipated a swanky affair so i wore d whole shebang (jacket, tie & short). met some 'ol college mates, nad & zul. byk jugak hot babes there, but then again it is izrin d life of d party gal, so its to be expected she knows alotta hot fashionistas, wee!

accidentally bumped into pedd there as well, didnt know she knew nad @ one of the bridesmaids. btw, pedd wanted to say hi to all d sii folks..

on sunday wanted to ask someone out tp dia byk songeh so tak jadi. after tht got message from em's saying i could meet her up at d curve @ 300pm to collect my long awaited (2 months) brand new, shiny reusable chopstix courtesy of d'jungle people FOC!

wow, thx em i love it!

turns out it was changed slightly to lunch around 145-ish. when i go thr decided to call Orphine, my elder sis about the cash exchange to rupiah for d upcoming trip to Bali this friday. after songeh byk songeh, decide to jus teet-teet (fyi in out family tht means ATM - Automated teller machine) d money to sister's acct & let her handle it bcos apparently in kk, conversion rate much higher than here.

nyway met em, went to a viet restaurant, borak punya borak smp sambung at kfc tesco pastu i decide to head back. tried em's suggestion which was to catch a cab at d entrance of curve but after half an hour still no luck. i tried d taxi stand flers & they wanted to charge me 20 bucks to KJ lrt station without d meter. wtf!! so i tell 'em to take a hike...

in d mean time there's this arab-looking mum & daughter whom i find out are heading to the same direction. i ask if we could ride together to save cost & she finally hails down 1 dude who's willing to take all three of us, with d meter running to our destination, halleluyah prayers answered (or so i thought)..

not 2 minutes into the ride, where d taxi's jus begun to leave ikea heading to highway, that idiotic woman opens her trap & tells d driver that another taxi dude tell her that under no circumstances should she pay more than 10 bucks to a taxi.

straightaway our fren has second thoughts & tells d three of us to exit d taxi & find some other ride in spite of all my attempts to smoothen feathers & dat *^%&$ woman going on & on.

so wat to do, i told them to try their luck then & there, while i walked all the way to 1U old wing to watch a taxi there. phew!

wat else la, mmg bengang giler on d walk back, bodo punya pempuan...grr

so yes, i had an interesting weekend dont u think?

lt8rs folks

sy smp lewat kerna u43 lambat...

2008-07-01T13:34:00.007+08:00

1st trip bas rapidkl U43 (yg servis laluan bandar utama-cyberjaya) ari ni dtg lambattt sgt, 750. biasanya dr station kelana jaya 1st smp around 645, 2nd around 715 ...entah la, drebar kerek brangkali (korek ke pengunaan ayat tue, guru2 sayer?)...

dh lama drebar tu x wah hal camni utk kitorang yg amik bas 1st trip...ada sesetgh penumpang nyer (in particular sesetgh dr opis sii-netlinx) anggap yg drebar ni men dadu; ada ari dia kata ngan member dier..."ari ni camner plak, nk smp ontime ke x nk...aksi efek gelek gelek dadu...hmm ok, arini aku xmau ontime, (sambil klakar jahat) whahahaha..." sbb entah la, secara ikhlas (& sinis) kadang2 cam pemandu bas kita ni tgk musim/mud dier tau...mostly on time smp, tp bg veteran penumpang bas cam aku ni, biasa ny tiap 2-4 minggu mesti at least skali-dua, smp lewat giler. time balek tu xyah la nk ckp...dua kali lima...ikut mud/nasib/dadu pemandu kita ni...klau baek trus jln, kalau x silap2 45minit sangap.

percaya la rungutan sy ini dikongsi ramai rerakan sy yg atas sbb tertentu kena amik public transport..in my situation, blum ckup deposit nk beli kreta...harap2 hujung thn ni ke, awal thn depan.

yg tu kira masa yg diabiskn sangap menuggu jer, keblakangan ni sbb nek harga minyak etc etc ramai yg berpusu2 amik bas = human sardin jam = sy kini tau camner perasaan seekor sardin dlm tin kecik dlm setor jusco tu. sejak 3-4 minggu ni tiap2 kali balik mesti sardin kau2..aku tau ayat2 aku yg setrusnyer mungkin ditafsirkn sbg menyindir, tp aku ni veteran nek bas lbih 1 1/2thn u43 da so i think i knw wat im talking abt...1 ari kena amik gamba utk tunjuk korang how effin messed up d situation is.

nasib la kalau berdiri bersebelahan org msia tp kalau x bernasib sgt kena berdiri berdekatan org asing, omfg korang either sembahyang/tup hidung/harap aliran udara airkon tu berdekatan muka anda bcos they ***** stink ladies & gentleman. entah la diorang as my mum sez x pkai deodarant. kalau sekadar bau peluh masih bole tahan, ni plak bau hanyir entah beb..susah nk jelas kn dlm ayat, bau bangkai pun kalah, serius hokay.

nyway, rasany enuf la aku komplen & rungut psal rutin pagi sy ni. ini cumala cebisan pendapat sy yg biased sbg makluk manusia dr seberang laut cina slatan (which even thr they dont stink as bad, tu la x paham knaper...).

ttfn, more rants to come, heheh...

Get Smart & Wanted reviews

2008-06-30T09:30:00.003+08:00

(1) Get Smart - near complete indistinguishable from the classic tv series; still Carrell is pretty funny, but only in some hilarious laugh out haha scenes (toilet, dance, impromtu kiss & laser security). rest is usual hollywood stuff..who know's they might do a sequel. 3/5 stars

(2) Wanted - had my doubts as i wasn' t too impressed with the director's other 'Watch films. aside from some interesting effects & concepts, its a pretty normal hollywood action film. heck towards the end, i felt like i was watching a two-hour public service announcement, haha. watchable but not a must-see...3.5/5 stars

joke

2008-06-25T11:33:00.002+08:00

simple & short joke for y'all..picked it up from some forum couple of years back:

My grandfather died in his sleep, smiling...unlike the rest of his passengers, screaming.

now tell me that wasn't funny : )

makes me crack a smile everytime i remember it, lolz.

mini-guide to sabah speak

2008-06-24T16:33:00.003+08:00

stumbled into this post here. am reproducing it verbatim here for your reading pleasure:

It’s kinda funny that some people do actually put an effort to list down some of the Sabahan famous words and get it circulated via forwarded e-mail or even in Friendster messages/buletins. But in a way, it’s good to let people know about it as it help some people to differenciate between Sabahan and Indonesian. Hey, we do not sound like Indonesian OK!!! And we do not talk like them, even the slang is not the same…Hello!!! Should thanks the person who prepared the list (U R doing a good job here…thanks to you!!!)

All I can say is, I’m proud to be born Sabahan…yeahhhh!!! I’m a Sino-Kadazan gal who do not know how to speak either chinese or kadazan but still, I love being me

You are a Sabahan if u say and understand these words….

1. tuuuna / saaaana - points with the lips - (there– at a distance)(the longer the ‘tuuuuuuuuuuuuuuna / saaaaaaaaaaaaaana’ the further the place is.)
2. limpas (to pass/walk by - Maaf, saya limpas dulu? Excuse me, can I passby?
3. palui (stupid, duh!)
4. tapuk (to hide)
5. bida (ugly)
6. bubut (as in proper malay- “kejar”, to chase)
7. sakai (ignorant, uncivilized, “hoosier“)
8. andang-andang (that’s how it is)
9. sapak (kasi campur/gaul –utk masakan-to mix as in cooking)
10. inda/tia (short form of “tidak” - not, no)
11. wicin (another brand of msg as in “aji-no- moto” - a seasoning or food enhancer)
12. talampau (proper malay - “terlampau”- too much)
13. takajut (proper malay - “terkejut” - shocked, startled)
14. siorang (proper malay -”kami”/ “saya-orang” - us, we)
15. ngam-ngam (proper malay “kebetulan” - et, at that time)
16. mangkali (proper malay “barangkali” - maybe, perhaps)
17. kamarin (proper malay “kelmarin” - yesterday)
18. kanapa / napa (proper malay “kenapa” - why)
19. gia (___expression - “is it?”)
20. bah (___expression - “ok!”)
21. ah? (question, “Apa?” What?)
22. kici / kicil (proper malay “kecil” - small)
23. basar (proper malay “besar” - big, huge)
24. siok (___expression/description, proper malay “seronok” - enjoyable, great)
25. urang (”orang” - people; sometimes used “diurang” - them, they)
26. karing (”kering” - dry)
27. umban (”humban, lempar” - throw)
28. kana (”kena”- got ie–”kena umban” - got thrown)
29. padih (”pedih” - as in “Mata saya padih/pedih!” - My eyes stings, painful)
30. numbur (”nombor” - number)
31. gali (”geli” as in squeemish about something)
32. dorang (”dia orang/diurang” - them, they - Dorang pigi tamu. They went to the market.)
33. panat (”penat” - tired)
34. katawa (”ketawa” - laugh, laughing)
35. lanjang (a.k.a. “periuk /belanga ” - pots/pans)
36. putung (”potong” - cut, slice)
37. buduh (”bodoh” - stupid)
38. tongo / bongo (”stupido” - same as above )
39. kabaruan (”kebaru-baruan”- new to something)
40. giuk (proper malay “ulat”- worm)
41. Sikui (Tembikai - watermelon)
42. Santut (Underwear)
43. celana / salana (Seluar - pants)
44. gipit (to grip…)
45. kanapatan / kadapatan (caught red handed.. or as the malays in kl say..’kantoi’)
46. kebangkalan (choked while eating..proper malay = ‘tersedak’)
47. ketulahan (bad karma)
48. bahai (plastic bag)
49. uinnaaa! (used to express various feelings, mostly when surprised..)
50. ging (derived from the word gang.. means kawan/member)

these are just a small segment of the words used, but fairly representative. cant recall at the drop of a hat as i need to get into the groove wit a couple sabah folks, hehe.

so now you know ^_^

a day is not an excuse

2008-06-23T09:33:00.003+08:00

mondays is not an excuse to be glum, uncommunicative, unresponsive & an overall sourpuss.

deal with it, just like the other 5 or so billion people in the world.

and no 'effin double standards please.

Libra Tunnel

2008-06-19T13:22:00.003+08:00

kena tag ole mr zam-zam alakazam, ere goes:

1 minit yang lalu, apa anda buat?
• tgh qa dumrath yg diabis kn ole rakan2 sekerja gd sepejabat sy

1 hari yang lalu, apa anda buat?
• sangap ofis qa ngan lambat & bosan & nk tido

1 hari lagi, apa anda akan buat?
• same thing we do every day pinky, try to go to work!

1 orang yang terakhir menelefon kamu?
• umm, antu kot..ari khamis lepas. baca pengalaman sy sini

1 makanan yang baru dibeli?
• arini xder, kelmarin bun manis

1 barang yang baru hilang?
• x igt. im a careful person

1 cerita yang baru ditonton?
• Kungfu Panda camrip, thx to chris via clint

1 hal yang terakhir digosipkan?
• umm, psal sorang rakan se-ofis yg cantek manis, sering dibuli, & di bahan

1 kata yang ingin diluahkan?
• jgn undi BN

1 buku yang sudah dibaca?
• x igt tajuk dier exactly..psal cara hidup & sosio-ekonomi era tokugawa jepun. very interesting, bt only for harcore jidaigeki historians

1 penyakit yang sering datang?
• Selsema

1 keinginan?
• kentang goreng Mcd, soggy pls

being accountable

2008-06-17T09:16:00.002+08:00

reading this article in the nst website got me thinking:

too many folks out there have a blinkered idea or interpretation of the way things can or should be done, in regards to civil affairs & civic consciousness.

Im referring to the recent political 'tsunami' where, as most of you already know PR (pakatan rakyat) sapu-ed 4 states & now rule them.

many think that PR rule (in lieu of state government) accounts to a 'magic wand' of sorts where all troubles, complaints will magically be resolved/disappear once BN is toppled.

what i'm trying to say is that many folks consider that anything & everything is the government's fault; since i already pay my taxes, its up to you to do something about it (ie everything, inc pulling a rabbit from the magicians hat)

this is wrong, and i will proceed to explain why.

as a member of society, EVERYONE plays a part to make the society what it is. not just the state government, federal government, local council, dbkl, dbpj, mpsj, your neighbour, neighbour's dog, fleas on neighbour's dog. you get the picture.

local council/government cant do everything by themselves, we have to help them as well, thats how we keep society ordered its a two-way street. just because you pay taxes doesn't mean u can just cross yr hands & order people what to do, you have to play your own part as well.

granted i'm aware as much as any of you there's corruption & stuff, that doesn't change the fact of the matter.

i'll give you an examples of public callousness & apathy.

people complain streets are dirty & city council doesnt do their job. well, if YOU don't throw garbage everywhere, there won't be garbage IN the streets will there? & don't gimme that i-cant-find-d-garbagecan/too-far-i'll-just-throw-it-anywhere excuse.

which brings me to my next point. too many excuses (indirectly, lack of responsibility).

can't this, can't that etc etc..bull***t, i say.

i'll end with this quote, from jfk:

"ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for yours"

'nuff said..

soo happy

2008-06-13T11:25:00.005+08:00

1) internet at home is back online, yahoo!!!

2) no more mysterious calls from the house phone

3) slept okay...found out the way-too-bright light outside my side of the room can be switched off

strange event

2008-06-12T10:45:00.003+08:00

something strange happened this morning. very strange as its the first time this has happened to me before. i know this would probably strike most of you as a ghost story, but i dont't easily get spooked by stuff like this. anyway, here goes...

i have a house phone, which was recently reconnected on saturday, which is placed on my desk. thing is i turned it off, even unplugging the power cable (which i distinctly remember doing) as my streamyx connection is still offline as i felt it pointless to have it powered-on as i rarely take calls on it & only seldom use it to make long-distance calls to home.

as usual was tossing & turning trying to sleep...didn't check the time but i think it was around 3-4am. i know i was not asleep, but likely half-awake when i clearly heard the house phone ring. took me a while to realize it was quite loud & that it was sounded like it was coming from my DISCONNECTED house phone.

first thing that went thru my head was "can't be...its probably from the upstairs room". thing is MY phone kept on ringing by which time i was wide awake & sat up on my bed to stare at the phone.

funny thing is i didn't feel afraid or anything then. so i decided to get up, walk over & hang-up the phone, just to see if it would stop. and it did! didn't think much of it & decided to try & go back to sleep, which i failed as usual.

when i woke up to take a bath, was contemplating what happened, still thinking if it might have been a dream. so after i got dressed & booting up the pc to watch a few minutes of the last samurai, i checked the power extension plug & confirmed that the house phone's power plug was unplugged all along like i remembered! even tho there are battery slots for it, i know i took them out before i shifted.

hmm...

so yea, that's my story. hmmm.................{cue x-files theme music playing}

insomniac blues...

2008-06-11T11:20:00.002+08:00

couldn't take another sleepless nite (since sunday evening), so decided to take a sleeping pill (my 2nd of 5 issued) my doc prescribed... gawd that felt good. did wake up mid-morning as usual but not enuf to goto d loo. so yea, was still feeling sleepy dis morning but at least i wasn't cranky like d previous day.

for the uninitiated, a few things about me:
been unable to sleep fitfully at nite past few years, but more acutely past 1 year... been thinking too much (still do). unable to easily 'switch-off' brain during zzz time (maybe its time to try some yoga....or say goosefraba). light sleeper, cant sleep wit loud noise & light, easily jolted; once awake difficult to go back to sleep. i also get cranky & get irritated easily when i suffer lack of sleep.

asked d doctor during my 2nd hepatitis d shot for some advice & he prescribed me some sleeping pills wit strict instructions not to take them daily but only when absolutely necessary. he also advised keeping track of my usage, and to inform him when i've finished d 5 tablets he issued so he can advise further medications if necessary.

took my 1st one some 2-3 weeks ago, didn't really work i think as i still woke up mid-morning; a persistent & aggravating problem even after trying out some remedies like herbal sleep, chamomile tea & various 'sleep suggestions' etc.

thought getting an airconditioned room would help to alleviate the problem but turns out, its dang noisy & turning it on while sleeping wont help at all; nowadays jus use it when not sleeping & use the fan whn zzz-ing.

sigh...seriously don't know how much of this i can take. did a full medical checkup a few months back & doc gave me a clean bill of health (very surprisingly) as i was very worried about sleep deprevation to the point that i thought i was suffering from diabetes. i know that lack of sleep can have severe long-term effect on health but i really don't know how to come up with an effective long term solution to this problem.

& no counting sheep doesnt help >_<

ah well...

POCOYO!

2008-06-05T14:44:00.003+08:00

introduced Pocoyo to the office...safe to say (almost) everyone liked it, hehe...

had only 1ep wit me, a little cloud. will bring somemore tomorrow. was introduced to pocoyo thanks to my 3-yr old niece, nana who religiously watches it 3 times everyday! since we adults have to watch wat the little one watches, i got hooked on it bcos pocoyo is funny, entertaining, nice, cute, etc etc u get the picture.

ohya, to all the peeps who didnt get to watch, jus spark me k, i share2 ^_^ alternatively if you have astro, turn to channel 63 (i think) ; its on 3 times daily around 8-ish, noon-ish & 5-ish if i'm not mistaken

to all those who like nice, cute animation watch pocoyo! hehe..

streamyx & phone woes...

2008-06-04T10:03:00.003+08:00

took yesterday off to disconnect my streamyx & phone from my old place to transfer to my new joint. went to the telekom branch at kelana jaya, coz 1) its nearer, probably has shorter queues & 2) i hate going to the uptown one, so packed & u could easily wait up to an hour before they call yr number & 3) i cant take an hour of listening to the sounds of "ting!! SATU EMPAT TIGA DUA!!" over & over again, argghhhh....its ok, im calm now.

was supposed to go super-early, set my alarm at 730 so i can be at the counter by 830. but body was lazy to move so after much persuasion (aka dozing lar) i hauled my ass outta bed at 930 weeee! left around 11-ish..

thing is everything settle before noon so i called mila to find out how things were in the office. only she & nur (chris didnt show up). umm, yea thts about the crux of the question, since the other one wasn't soo important to mention here, hehe...

anyway, went back & brought lunch at my old chap fun (nasik campur chines style) joint, opposite the bookstore @ mayang; had some charsiu & vege - yummy, jus the way i like it...homecooked, simple & tasty.

got home, ate watched some eps of zero no tsukaima and took a nap...which was supposed to be short as i wanted to arrange d boxes piled outside & move the essentials into d room. thing is, i got soooo comfy i slept from 2 ish to 530! decided then to put it off till the weekend when i have more time.

diddle dawdled, watched ezora ep 10 (yes i can hear some of you groan out there...but fazura & dynas look sooo pretty ^_^) then remembered i had to collect my laundry. god punishes lazy people bcos pn my way back it poured, but its ok bcos was gonna take a shower then nyway..

watched news, made indomie for dinner, watched more tsukaima then knocked off around 11-ish.

thats about it for my day, yesterday. tata for now..

Weekend Update (31st May-1st June 2008)

2008-06-02T09:24:00.003+08:00

1) moved house on saturday. Same area, kelana jaya but shifted to mayang jaya. its a semi-d house near the tnb sub-station. very tiring, but at least now i'm nearer to the lrt station, hopefully transport wont be an issue in future.

2) as my long-suffering & problematic monitor finally died on saturday morning, chucked it in the bin before i vacated my old place. went down to lowyat on sunday morning to buy a new one; i am now a proud owner of a brand new shiny, samsung 19in wide-screen LCD monitor, hehe ^_^

suffered from "monitor shock" initially when i tested my video playback on it, as i was unused to wide-screen viewing. once i got the hang of it, i now watch movies & videos from a good distance of 3-4ft away since it gives a cinema like feel to it...so pretty! even wallpapers look so much better now, especially in hires as the sharp, vibrant colours literally pops out from the screen.

am presently watching the film Sunshine now, hehe : )

debut screenwriting

2008-05-30T13:55:00.005+08:00

tagged by anum

The Rules :
1. Anda di tugaskan menjadi seorang "screenwriter"
2. Anda hanya perlu menulis skrip dan jalan cerita anda sendiri berpandukan pada gambar yang disediakan.
3. Keluarkan bakat anda yang tersembunyi, anda adalah seorang "screenwriter" yang hebat.
( sila berikan markah )

Pic1: "Uiii nahhh ko tinguk bah, si budu betul niii...urang suda lambat, dia kasi lambat lagi, stop tengah jalan. sia umban batu nanti baru tau..."
Pic2: "wooiii, cepat jalan woiii. suda la mabuk2, ko bikin traffic jam sampai bundusan suda. abis ko kalau bos marah sia nanti"
Pic3: "bah sia suda tidak tahan ni, jagak kau! sia kasi kuntau sama kau, humph!!"
Pic4: "hyiaghh! fuh!! fuh!! &*($)(#&)#!!! mati kau!!?@! piak piak {adegan seterusnya di censored kerana aksi SG-18}..."
Pic5: "baaa tida cukup bahh dia ni.. eih? alaa, silap2 dia butul2 mati ni tau. baa siapa la yg salah ni, abis pulis dtg nnt...abis la, matai sia"
Pic6: "bangun baaa, sia tida mau masuk itu pinjara ko dingar? sia blum lagi kawin si esther, blum baranak satu kluarga, blum tinguk iron man lagik...ko jgn main2. aku komplen ngan mummy daddy ko nanti..........fuh! punya la cantik sumandak tadi!!! phiewwittt! mcm si daphne iking oooo.. bah suda sia jalan peduli kau, byeeeee!!!"

dunno who to tag, takut nnt teda urang mau main gem siama sia : )

decision(s), decision(s)...sigh

2008-05-30T09:14:00.003+08:00

have (or isit had?) a website dedicated to particular segments of the Cowboy Bebop vintage anime series, The Cowboy Bebop Visual Guide.

haven't been updating it in a while (if u call a 4-year hiatus a while), for various reasons: been busy wit exams then, tedious trackbacks taking such a longgggg time, etc.

since that time, had been receiving, actually STILL am receiving emails from various individuals; offering opinions, suggestions etc. feel bad about letting them go unposted & unreplied on the website sooo.....

i am contemplating continuing updates here, or at the very least, opening an additional blog specifically for the visual guide updates. then again, since i just started this, i shud take things one at a time lest i be carried away/swamped/overwhelmed wit too much cetusan pendapat/musings/rants.

hmm see how lah, tbd (to be decided).

oo yer seblum sy bereder, nk bertrima kasih ngan semua posting sokongan korang, i terharu tau...U ALL CARE! im touched ^_^

bah, sia mau wish u all gud mornin, slamat ber gumbira & kawaii (cute) always,
d ol man

welcome to meeee

2008-05-29T14:05:00.000+08:00

after constant encouragement/jabbering/threats (heheh..) here is my 1st post in blogosphere.

Yes, raymond blogs (sounds more like rants, raves, complaints; must banish negative thots).

for now it'll pretty much consist of musings, book/anime/show/movie reviews, hyperlinks to interesting articles/videos/etc online junk, opinion pieces, etc etc....u get the picture.

language of choice will largely be in english (dunno esperanto), occasionally in nihon-go and bm, and perhaps a lil sabah-style speak thrown in as well (sia dari sabah bah! undio noh sia ^_^).

looks like fun; will try to update frequently to keep my non-existent fans happy..

agirato neh, minna-san...

ojisan (aka d ol man @ ray @ raymond @ men men @ amen @ bro)