Monochromatic Me

I Have Moved

2010-03-14T21:16:00.006+08:00

To my fellow readers.

I HAVE MOVED.
to
A simple no-holds-barred, raw, uncut, awesome, whatever-you-name-it blog

You have been warned:

MIND YOUR STEP

PS: Those who previously linked me...kindly re-link.

Happy Chinese New Year

2010-02-14T00:49:00.003+08:00

Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Valentines Day!
Happy visiting!
Happy eating!
Happy getting fat!
Happy getting many ang pao's!
Happy gatherings and feasting!
Happy shaking many many peoples hand!
Happy serving your friends and family!
Happy taking photos!
Happy gambling!
Happy main mercun!

Ask me a question

2010-02-06T22:33:00.002+08:00

Added a cool little widget which allows anyone to ask me any questions anonymously at the side bar. Go on! Ask me a question! I don't care what sort. =D

Or you can direct your browser to: http://www.formspring.me/sotongteo

Long day nearly over

2010-02-05T18:52:00.004+08:00

Today was a damn long day.

8am. Barely could wake up because was out late the previous night. First class was more like a show & tell. Some fella by the name of Simon came to give us a talk on Topical Fluoride and showed us a few market products.

9am. Dr. Hana's lecture. Slow as usual but this time her lecture only had 18 slides. Whew.

10am. Breakfast. 2 eggs + nasi lemak + teh-o-ais

10.30am. Assisted my clinical partner, Vethiah, in examining and diagnosing her patients. Made an appointment with Dr. Rozaidah to do my amalgam filling next week. Just in time for CNY. Won't want be chowing down biscuits and cakes with a temporary filling. =D

1pm. Lunch. Got an sms from Bruce Lee asking me for some zombie killing time. Too bad couldn't go as I had patients in the afternoon.

2pm. First patient came in for complete denture. Quite puzzled as to how to examine the intra-oral stuff because the patient had no teeth at all!!!

3pm. Second patient came in. We were the first group to have two patients for prostho on the same day. Had Joyce Ong as my assistant, since Vethiah had to deal with the other patient.

4.30pm. We took a total of 6 impressions at the end of the day. 3 for upper and lower each. Kept failing. And the impressions were so-so only. Need more practice. Shit. Luckily patient was cooperative enough. He seemed rather relaxed. The whole room was messy like hell though, even though we tried to keep everything organized.

5.30pm. Finished casting the impressions into stone models. Failed miserably. Only 2 jadi at the end of the day. FFFFFFFF!!!!!

6.15pm. Reached home. Good thing was that the internet is back on! Woohoo!

7.00pm. End of post. Reason: Time to head out! TGIF style!

Letter to Streamyx

2010-02-01T21:38:00.002+08:00

Dear Mr. Streamyx Technican

Please come and transfer my internet line as soon as possible. I need teh internetz. I can have severe depression without it. Sleepless nights aplenty. I need to check whose has been spamming my mail and my Facebook. Not to mention spamming them back. =D

So please (x >9000 infinity) come and fix the line!

Kthxbai!

We Gonna Run the Devils Down!

2010-01-31T14:51:00.003+08:00

Fuhh...finally moved the final few items to my new house. Not to mention cleaning up the old room and the bathroom as well. Damn, just found out how much trash I have. Bagsful. Now what's left is just to unpack everything at the new place, move the table and clothes hangar, vacuum more stuff...Eh...shit...still got so many stuff to do!?!

2 more weeks and back Kuching dy. Planning a paintball game with the homies hopefully. =o

Tomorrow, up Bukit Tabur. 3rd time up there if it goes on successfully. Training for the Mount KK climb end of this year. Wootz!

Arsenal vs Man Utd. tonight. Epic match of the season? Time to show the Devils some GUNPOWAAAARRR!!! Mr. Jay Wong...if Arsenal menang I belanja you one teh-o-limau-ais ok? Haha. Gonna watch it at the mamak below the condo tonight plus shisha session. Anyone wanna join? =p

1st night at new room

2010-01-26T13:34:00.003+08:00

And I woke up with a severe back pain till I barely could stand up.

F*** It!

Either must have been the new bed or the massive heavy lifting of things earlier that day to the new room. Couldn't have been the paintball because I was ok the previous day.

Decided to skip class...and sleep over it...which didn't help.

The simple task of going downstairs to tapao lunch was pure torture.

Bought Yoko Yoko and I think must have applied too much of it...

Now the back is burning. =.=

Awesomeness

2010-01-25T00:55:00.005+08:00

Woohoo...today played paintball with the some juniors and friends! Damn syiok! Didn't kena blasted like mad though. In fact, only scars I got was from crawling in the bushes and slipping and falling down. =.= But perhaps the closest thing to close combat and tactical action imo. Expensive sport though. If only it was cheaper, then you'll probably see me playing regularly dy. Haha.

Wootz!

Anyhow, plans for the coming week:

- Become a 'demo' for the class. Gonna have cavity restoration done by my lecturer.
- Going to University Malaya this Thursday with a few batch mates as representatives to some dental student conference. Sorta sponsored by Mahsa. Best part is...I get to take photos for our dental faculty. Haha
- Hopefully manage to do some scaling...and finish up my waxing up of denture blocks.
- Move my stuff to the new house. So far moved 30% of it only. Set up the internet connection there (if not can die...) Clean the old house.
- Save some money...getting broke after all the shopping and fun. Shit.
- Pay off debts. =.=

Why?

2010-01-22T01:15:00.005+08:00

I just don't get it, how one person...

Is proven childish on many occasions and yet scold others childish?
Is already an adult by age but acts no near one?
Thinks he is independent and yet have to depend on others?
Buys designer clothes and yet has it chosen by his mom?
Questions the style of others but yet thinks his mom has the best fashion sense?
When is unsure of something in life calls the mom?
Lives in Malaysia but thinks the grass is greener in London?
Denies 99% of the time and yet says he can make decisions?

Acts a fool and yet say we have to be professional?
Laughs at the joke of others but doesn't know that the joke is on him?
Makes jokes and pranks at others but can't take one to seriously himself?
Drives a car but doesn't know how to park properly?
Doesn't want to take charge but feels that he is a responsible person?
Walks with a bold front but with 99 knives sticking behind him...and counting...
Doesn't realize the embarrassment he deals but feels proud instead?
Asks dumb questions and repeats what has been said?
Makes loud statements which are utmost unreasonable and irrational?
Thinks that most expensive things are the best in life?
Receives advice, listens and then discards them like smoking a cigg and discarding the butt?

Perhaps this person is not meant to be understood.
Perhaps the brain is no similar to a primate.
Perhaps this person thinks the clock has a 13th number.
Perhaps this person has been pampered all his life (and he probably denies it)
Perhaps this person needs to be taught a lesson in life.
The hard way...

“He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends.”

-Oscar Wilde-

Lightning!

2010-01-18T21:51:00.003+08:00

Woohoo...finally able to capture a lightning strike on cam! Took me 50+ shots to get it...patience patience. Mega thunderstorm when I woke up. Grabbed my cam and headed to the lift lobby with the view of Damansara Uptown. Slighly blur because it was handheld. I didn't had a tripod with me. =(

ISO 200 | 5sec handheld! (woot!) | f14 | 36mm | Manual focus |

Hell Yeah!

2010-01-15T20:10:00.001+08:00

Free Dentures!

2010-01-12T14:10:00.005+08:00

Since we are required to find patients for our protho classes, Min suggested we paste posters around the campus and PBD area. So I came up with this poster to attract more patients! Haha!

Note: Just a draft...yet to be approved.

C&C please!

Today's Class Attendance

2010-01-11T13:11:00.003+08:00

*photo credits to Sai*

Yap...I'm absent...enjoying vacation back at Kuching. =)

From the Great Granddaughter of Tunku Abdul Rahman

2010-01-06T23:46:00.003+08:00

Sharyn Lisa Shufiyan, 24
Conservationist
(Tunku Abdul Rahman’s great granddaughter)

“Both my parents are Malay. My mum’s heritage includes Chinese, Thai and Arab, while my dad is Minangkabau. Due to my skin colour, I am often mistaken for a Chinese.

“I’m happy that I don’t have the typical Malay look but I do get annoyed when people call me Ah Moi or ask me straight up: “Are you Chinese or Malay?”

“Like, why does it matter? Before I used to answer ‘Malay’, but now I’m trying to consciously answer ‘Malaysian’ instead.

“There’s this incident from primary school that I remember till today. Someone told me that I will be called last during Judgement Day because I don’t have a Muslim name. Of course, I was scared then but now that I’m older, I realise that a name is just a name. It doesn’t define you as a good or bad person and there is definitely no such thing as a ‘Muslim’ name. You can be named Rashid and still be a Christian.

“I’ve heard of the 1Malaysia concept, but I think we don’t need to be told to be united. We’ve come such a long way that it should already be embedded in our hearts and minds that we are united. Unfortunately, you can still see racial discrimination and polarisation. There is still this ethno-centric view that the Malays are the dominant group and their rights must be protected, and non-Malays are forever the outsiders.

“For the concept to succeed, I think the Government should stop with the race politics. It’s tiring, really. We grew up with application forms asking us to tick our race. We should stop painting a negative image of the other races, stop thinking about ‘us’ and ‘them’ and focus on ‘we’, ‘our’ and ‘Malaysians’.

“No one should be made uncomfortable in their own home. A dear Chinese friend of mine said to me once: ‘I don’t feel patriotic because I am not made to feel like Malaysia is my home, and I don’t feel an affinity to China because I have never lived there’.

“I know some Baba Nyonya friends who can trace their lineage back hundreds of years. I’m a fourth generation Malaysian. If I am bumiputra, why can’t they be, too? Clearly I have issues with the term.

“I think the main reason why we still can’t achieve total unity is because of this ‘Malay Rights’ concept. I’d rather ‘Malay Rights’ be replaced by human rights. So unless we get rid of this bumiputra status, or reform our views and policies on rights, we will never achieve unity.

“For my Merdeka wish, I’d like for Malaysians to have more voice, to be respected and heard. I wish that the Government would uphold the true essence of parliamentary democracy. I wish for the people to no longer fear and discriminate against each other, to see that we are one and the same.

“I wish that Malaysia would truly live up to the tourism spin of ‘Malaysia Truly Asia’.

Classroom rants

2010-01-06T12:02:00.004+08:00

So Mahsa has did it again. Another timetable change. And this time:

"Next week's holidays are canceled"

#%*@&$! The reason: because the dean says that we are having too much holidays. WTF right? Isn't it abit to late to inform us? As in super late as some of us has already booked our flights & bus tickets back home. Why didn't they realized it earlier? Could have told us initially what? And they said that those who booked tickets are excluded and attendance won't be recorded. Bla bla bla...

Owh wait, forgot that it's Mahsa. Anything can happen. Mahsa boleh what?

And here we are all lost.

Singapore at a glance

2010-01-02T22:25:00.010+08:00

From the moment I got on the Tiger Airways plane bound for Singapore (my first trip to the island by the way), I knew that it was all going be so much different. Even though this small-once-part-of-Malaysia-now-a-fully-developed-country was approx 350km or 45 minutes of flight away, nearly every single bit of it was different from our country. And it was just separated from us by a strait.

And I was not wrong about it. There I was sitting in the plane beside two Singaporean girls busy chit-chatting among each other. Didn't mean to eavesdrop but just that their small little chat seems a little more interesting than the average random stranger chat you hear while in the bus or on the subway. From the Christian vs non-Christian relationship to the hot hairdresser at Toni & Guy and to everything under the moon. And it struck me, how perfectly tuned were their English.

Touchdown at the airport, hoped on a taxi driven by Chiew Yee's uncle and we were whisked to the apartment block we were staying. Along the highway, we were greeted by the many apartment & flat blocks towering the landscape. Lesser traffic somehow, probably it was still early. And nope you don't see any Protons or Perodua's on the highway. Haha. The Singapore-state-of-mind I guess.

And behold the sparkling cleanliness everywhere. No dirty rubbish strewn alley of a coffee shop. Rubbish bins aplenty mind you. Even at the bus hub, there's no black speck or patches of black oil stains on the roads of the bus parkings commonly seen here. And I found out why. When we were waiting for the bus late at night when the stations were about to close, we see the workers using water sprays to clean the roads and curbside. And this was at a neighborhood area, we're not talking about the city streets yet.

Since we were staying at the neighborhood area instead of the regular hotel, we could observe what the people here do daily. Most of them here walk and take the bus. Some cycle. And if they wanted to go downtown, they take the MRT. Hardly you see cars though. And everything less bustled somehow. At night its also a different sight. You see people jogging or just walking around the park. A couple was seen pushing their baby in the pram. Two friends walking their dogs. Girls wearing shorts and skirts walking along the road minding their own business. All this at 12 something in the middle of the night.

Which makes me wonder, is it really that safe out here? Till I saw a banner hung across the bus stop; "Even though the crime rates are low, it doesn't mean that it's safe. Be on your guard always" Back in Malaysia, can we even be that confident to say that crime rates are low? Haha.

Efficiency is the key. Everything is so much integrated. Especially the MRT system they have. Damn punctual and fast. And there's no need of buying tickets over the counters, thanks to the GTM (general ticketing machines) they have at each stations. Heck, even the escalators are fast. Min & Chiew Yee nearly fell because of it. Haha. And boarding the bus, we noticed that we were the only ones using cash. Everyone is using the EZlink card.

The people? Strange, but they all somehow appeared more tan. Haha. And they certainly know how to dress. Plenty of chicks I must say, which makes it a glorious sighting at each corner. LoL. But hey, that's a superficial assessment though. =p Doesn't mean that Malaysia doesn't have hot chicks. Maybe because part of the reason is that all the people are concentrated in that small island?

Anyway, here is it, 2 days in Singapore in 20 pictures:

#1 Flats and highrise apartments everywhere.

#2. Stayed in somewhere in an apartment at Hougang. It's actually quite huge inside compared to the outside.

#3. Hanged out on the roof of Vivo City with my travel companions, Jin, Min & Chiew Yee.

#4. After which took the monorail to Sentosa island. Camwhored like mad.

#5 Took some attractions' package which offered a 4D cinematic experience among them

#6 Went luging for the first time. Fun. It was like go-carting downhill.

#7 Took a skyride. And it rained halfway through. Saw awesome views of the island and the sea.

#8 Did plenty of funny & stupid stuff all the way. Haha.

#9 Walked down along Siloso beach. Saw people trying to surf the artificial wave pool at some surfhouse. Some failed miserably. But we were there to people watch actually. =p

#10 Headed down to Orchard at night. Admired the Christmas & New Year decorations...and the crowd as well.

#11 Day 2: Found the cheapest shop in Singapore.

#12 Went to Little India. The girls went to get some henna art done.

#13 Bugis Street. Similar to Petaling Street...just that they had adult shops in the open.

#14 Lunch at Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant.

#15 At the Esplanade. Saw many white colored balls floating at the bay. Found out they were for the countdown event later during the day.

#16 Went on the Singapore Flyer. Superb views of the city, sea, F1 track, buildings, etc...

#17 Aerial view 1

#18 Aerial view 2

#19 Supposed to head down to the Esplanade for the countdown. Took a wrong cut and ended up at the opposite end of Marina Bay. Walked all the way to the Padang and eventually saw the fireworks from there. Long crazy night

#20 After which we went straight to the airport...and did more funny stuff. =p

More pictures HERE (day 1) & HERE (day 2)

Happy New Year

2009-12-29T15:41:00.002+08:00

Happy New Year folks! Will be away at Singapore for the countdown. Woot!

Rock The World 9

2009-12-26T22:41:00.002+08:00

Back from Rock The World 9 concert earlier today at Bukit Jalil. (It's still going on the time I'm posting this) Freaking rained cats & dogs. Ended up drenched from top to bottom. Managed to catch John Mistress only out of the many bands I intend to see. Missed out on Love Me Butch, Disagree, Yuna, Seven Collar T-shirt, etc. Yet, there're some impressive bands out there.

More pictures here: Rock The World

HDR poisoning

2009-12-20T18:59:00.002+08:00

Time to 'poison' you all.

View from the 15th floor lift lobby

View from my room window

Bike ruins

Petronas Twin Towers

Rainy day at KLCC Park

Sunset @ Port Klang

Broga Hill

Aku Hanya Mahu Ke Seberang

2009-12-18T00:06:00.001+08:00

AKU HANYA MAHU KE SEBERANG

Kupahat cengal menjadi perahu
dayungnya teras tembusu
Layar bertingkat kapas gulung
tiangnya tegap kayu nibung

Panjinya kain suluk atma
bekas tangan tenunan
Sri di kamar waja.

Esok,
perahu akan ke air,
mengharung samudera,
meninggalkan pantai melawan ombak dan badai.

Perahuku kecil,
lautnya ganas.
Tenanglah laut,
kuala dan muara.
Ombak jangan gila melanda.

Tiuplah bayu pada layarku laju.
Dayung jangan patah
layar jangan rekah
tiang jangan rebah
Tuhan,
Aku hanya mahu ke seberang.

KARYA
Prof Dr Hashim Yaacob

(Note: yeah, this was written by our superbly 'qualified and glorified' oral pathology lecturer. skeptical? read this: http://dentistry.uitm.edu.my/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=110&tmpl=component&Itemid=73. owh and he has a wiki page as well. lmao.

LOL of the day!

2009-12-17T22:40:00.000+08:00

Dedicated to all Arsenal & Liverpool fans. =P

Knowing

2009-12-15T00:50:00.004+08:00

"Knowing something true does not make it what we wish it to be. We see things not as they are but as we are. Though feelings be strange and minds' eyes look through veiled souls, in the end it is not our despair that we should fear but rather it is our tenacity. It sets aflame hope where hope shalln't lucid linger, because sometimes pride can scar us more than hurt."

Impression & plans

2009-12-11T17:56:00.006+08:00

Snippet: A cowboy road into town on Friday. He stayed there for two nights and road out on Friday. How is that possible? Scroll to the bottom of the post to find out.

Anyway...it's FRIDAYYYY! End of week. As usual plans galore:

Plan #1: Paintball with super juniors. Somehow kurang sambutan from our class. And also I think the super juniors postponed it. Dunno lah. And I'm suppose to play with Mr. Lau's friends as well sometime soon. So...

Plan #2: Fishing/hiking tomorrow morning. Yes! Plan to be confirmed tonight with the fellas. It's either fishing somewhere at Kuala Selangor or Shah Alam, or a early morning hike up Broga Hill (again...yeah, for the 3rd time) to see the sunrise. Not to mention satay Kajang that comes after that! Woohoo!

Plan #3: Movie tomorrow night. Not sure if am going as well...depending on the morning's plan. This was Min's plan i think. Probably gonna watch Storm Warriors, etc. Somehow, Julian also invited me to watch, so...dilemma. Haha...owh, dunno why Zombieland is only released now in Malaysia. I watched it like many months ago. Emma Stone is just hot!

Plan #4: Tonights plan: shisha. Harvin suggested we try the new place at SS2. Asking Vin Ng and the few other regulars along. Bubblegum flavor sounds nice. lol.

Today was a super long day. Started with Dr. Hana's class. To avoid boredom since she was repeating the same thing she taught during year 2, I ended up YouTubing most of the time on my phone. (Wondering how? I have the password for the level 5 dental wifi! Hahaha!) Watched videos that include how they took impression during the 80s...without gloves somemore. LOL. Connie's class was funny. She laughs like a looney tune cartoon. But all that laughter somehow made Dr. Hana got mad at a few of us. Emo lagi.

Owh, and we had the mentor-menti selected already! And I have William as my mentee, making it easier since some of my notes are with him already and we hang out quite often. Saw the full list...kinda balanced though some partnerships might be a bit 'shocking'...haha.

In the afternoon we all saw a demo on Ruyuan's & Chiew Yee's patient. And we were all shocked at Dr. Hana's pretty rough method on the impression taking. The patient ended up bleeding...to the extend that the blood covered the impression tray and alginate. Yiks. Anyhow, I think we all kept our cool. =p

And we did our impression taking on our partners! And to my horror it does hurt alot if the tray doesn't fit well. So selection of tray...very very important! And the feeling of the alginate coming off your teeth is like having your teeth ripped out...lol. No wonder patients fuss alot.

Plenty of videos and pictures yet to be uploaded. Keep a watch on my FB!

Answer to the snippet: Friday was the name of his horse.

The 5th week has ended.

2009-12-04T18:10:00.009+08:00

And before I know it, I'm already a more than a month into the 3rd year of my course. Some updates over the past one month:

#1 Things are starting to get very clinical. Which means less theory. Which equals a happier me. Haha...clinicals & practicals are so much cooler than sitting down on a 2 hour lecture. Just got over the practice sessions for anesthesia injections. Guess we're gonna inject on our partners starting next week. Excited? Definitely. Just presented my patient's (partner's) case today. And I found out I am a special case...due to my filling which fell out last weekend because of the crab I ate. And behold a super large & deep cavity now lies. Gonna get my root canal treatment done the coming weeks. After all...its free! =)

#2 Yeap...the dental clinic here provides free treatment to its staff & students. By the way...I need patients! Requirements: Anyone who needs a partial or complete denture! Best of all...its FREE! The university has left us the task of finding our own patient for our prothodontics clinics...so I need a patient who requires a partial or complete denture. So please contact me if you have any friends of relatives who needs a partial or complete denture done!

#3 So we have Super Juniors now. (aka. the 3rd batch students) Got to know a few of them. Pretty cool batch I guess. And our batch was constantly comparing them with the 2nd batch juniors, and how different they were. Sorta more outgoing according to some. Suppose to have an orientation/telematch for them tomorrow...but due to the numerous postponements and problems, we had to cancel it out and replace it with a BBQ party at Ms. Tan's house.

#4 Just some pictures from the activities away from class:

Went camping in the jungle. Rained whole day and night long. Had a cozy campfire. Our beer got swept away. Had shisha there as well. Bathe in the river. Pure fun. We lived like jungle people.

This was 2 weeks ago. Went to the lookout point at Ampang. Became some sort of tradition already, having to visit this place each year of our course with coursemates. Haha.

Last weekends trip to Pulau Ketam. 2nd time there but with a bigger group and bigger incidents. A bike which fell into the river, and 1 of us fell through the wooden planks and another through the unstable concrete. Yiks!

Besides that, there's plenty of those many makan, yamcha, movie and outings sessions which made our bonds closer...and kept the fun going on! Keep it up fellas!

#5 There seems to be some class politics going on...from the few sources I obtained. Haha. Well nothing major so far. We have the MNG earlier...but now I guess we have to add another letter. Won't type it here because it would be rather obvious. (you know I know cukupla).

#6. Things of the simplest of matter are bothering me lately. Don't know why. Getting emo. Maybe because everyone is emo. Or maybe I've been listening too much of emo songs. LOL.

#7 Moving in to a new place next month. Not really new as in new house. It's more like the next block, and a few floors down. Unfurnished however, so I'm guessing I'm gonna have to furnish it myself. But still I like the place I'm staying at. There's a pool & gym downstairs. A mamak nearby for supper, shisha & football nights. Plus 1u is just 5 minutes away by car. Due to this new place, I'm on quite a tight budget, besides having to buy the many mahal books. Not to mention I need a wardrobe change because of the lack of formal clothes. =p

#8 A classmate of mine was seen weeping over personal remarks made by a lecturer who didn't saw the severity of it coming. I guess shit like that happens; examples aplenty. We tend to over react with but not know it. "Even the fish wouldn't get into trouble if it kept it's mouth shut"

#9 The PTPTN story continues. I missed it again. What the heck! Next submission date as I was told: January next year. Uni ppl say they told us...but we didn't get any notice or whatsoever. And they told me to check with the PTPTN officer in charge...who in turn told me to wait till the uni inform...which I know that they never will. Had my mom 'shoot rockets' at them...and me as well. And I believed the super juniors missed it as well. Another boleh for the university.

#10 On a different note, I wonder how the university gets to hire all those geng but weird lecturers to teach us. Or maybe we just too jakun, amazed by the lecturers achievement and stuff. The general medicine lecturer is a Dato' who earns rm300 per hour. And he was once the private practitioner to Tun Hussein Onn! @@. His brother, another doctor teaching us general surgery, has a special job of screening the F1 drivers before they are deemed fit for the F1 race at Sepang. Also damn weird. And the new oral pathology lecturer, according to the dean: 'the person to look for if you wana learn oral pathology', keeps laughing hysterically and compares the oral pathology to American missionaries and guerrilla troops. Damn weird and amusing, but damn experienced. Heh.

#11 Suddenly active in sports back again. Played badminton for 2 days this week alone. Yesterday played 4 hour sessions somemore. Can die. lol. Waiting to plan the next hiking trip with Kien Yee.

#12 Random: I like the morning rain. Please rain more in the morning.

109-115

2009-12-02T23:11:00.003+08:00

O, here
Will I set up my everlasting rest,
And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars
From this world-wearied flesh. Eyes, look your last!
Arms, take your last embrace! and, lips, O you
The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss
A dateless bargain to engrossing death!

-Act V, Scene III of Romeo and Juliet-

Back from

2009-11-27T23:25:00.004+08:00

Pulau Ketam!

Crazy whacked trip earlier today including a bicycle which decided to went for a swim! More pictures soon!

PICTURES ARE UP: CLICK HERE

EPL glory?

2009-11-24T23:27:00.003+08:00

HAHAHA...i feel bad...but it's the fact. LOL

I'm Broke

2009-11-22T19:12:00.005+08:00

Coming to buy/pay list:
List to be updated regularly

~~New house rental (advanced 3.5months payment) = Rm1500~~
New bed/mattress = ~Rm300
New washing machine (after shared) = ~Rm200
2nd hand fridge (after shared) = ~Rm150
Vacuum cleaner (after shared) = ~Rm150
Clothes hangar (after shared) = ~Rm50
New wardrobe = ~Rm200
New chair = ~Rm50
Condo access card = ~Rm100

. . .

Stethoscope = Rm130
~~Radiology textbook = Rm120~~
Oral Maxillofacial textbook = Rm125
~~Browse's Intro to Symptom & Signs of Surgical Diseases = Rm50~~
Essentials Surgery (Burkitt's) = Rm115
Medical problems in Dentistry = ~Rm100
Other subject books = Rm???
Friends birthday gift/party = ~Rm50

Total: Very Broke...

1st Day at Hospital

2009-11-17T19:43:00.008+08:00

*Waoooooooooooooo...1st day at hospital suppose to be a nice leh...but...*

We (group C & D) had our first trip to the hospital (Hospital Umum Kuala Lumpur) for classes earlier today which ended up somewhat chaotic however, mainly due to the improper planning and arrangement by the university. Biasalah...

So we people were told to wake up early and wait for the transport to fetch us up from the Esso petrol station @ Jalan Kasah by 7.15am.

And so we dragged our lazy bums over there, and ended up waiting till 8am for the bus to come and fetch us. And our classes was suppose to start over at the hospital at 8am. Bo pien lo, call lecturer and tell him we were late.

Found out later that the bus people weren't told by the management to come fetch us up...zzz. OK...nevermind that. However hor...the bus meanwhile fetch us to Jalan Universiti instead and ended up picking nursing students from MC!

So we though maybe the nursing students were heading to HKL...

But then...the bus patah balik to our uni @ PBD and drop the nursing students there before sending us to HKL. In the end, ended up spending 1 hour on the bus traveling around. And we people kena scold by the bus driver for making to much noise somemore...kanasai.

In the end stumbled our way to the hospital grounds. 1st time there, no one told us how the layout of the hospital was gonna be. We were just told to split into two groups, one group go surgical ward 9 another group go to some meeting room. Kinda lost for sometime...

Lost

So here we are in the room around something, and this is group C:

L-R: Didi, Chiew Yee, Poorani, Nelson, Nikunj, Fauzan (partially hidden), Mike (not in photo) & me.

Lecture was on General Medicine. And this fella here is our lecturer:

Meet Dato' Zul. Never fails to smile. Damn funny fella. He calls our dean by his name...Ariffin. And he bragged to Ariffin that his 'lecture room' was much more nicer than the one at Mahsa. LOL.

Owh and guess what...and our lecture lasted 30 minutes only! Partly because he had the room booked till 10am and that he had a phone call from the other professor who was teaching the other group which revealed something quite surprising:

What we found out later was proof that Mahsa memang boleh. In the phone call conversation, we got to know that the university people didn't fax to the hospital authority a letter which allows us to enter wards and acquire the patient details. Group D entered a ward for 10 minutes and was chased out because of this...

Lagi best we were told that Dato' Zul only got appointed yesterday as a part time lecturer and the other lecturer, Dr. Ismail, wasn't appointed yet...

Mahsa boleh! kan?

After that, we had our breakfast at the hospital cafeteria. Group D went back after that because there was no room for them to do General Medicine. As for us group C, we continued with our lecture here:

At the corridor of the wards! Best kan?! Owh...and meet Dr. Ismail! Lecturer of General Surgery. Heard from group D that he was one hell of a fella who could speak Bangla, greet patients in Canto and has a very weird personality. Haha.

Owh, and he uses a surgery book which was published in 1968 but told us not to get it unless we were as old as him. LOL! And he wears a backpack and walks around the hospital as if he's doing Lonely Planet: Hospital Edition! Damn funny character...something like Dr. House but a different variation. =p

This is him giving the lecture.

And when the lecture ended, we found out there was no transport for us to go back except for the bus which will only arrive at 2pm. And we have classes at 2pm. =.=

Translated quote: "Bus only arrives at 2pm. If you end early just wait outside, if got bus just take. If don't have just wait. If you still wan go back early...take public transport"

Mahsa boleh! kan?

In the end, we took the cab and paid RM12 for it.

So much so for the first day at hospital...

Simple Things in Life

2009-11-12T22:05:00.002+08:00

Courtesy of KXY/talktothewalls. You rawk.

The 30 most satisfying simple pleasures life has to offer.

1. Sleeping In on a Rainy Day – As the rain beats lightly against the window, you nestle your head deeper into your pillow. The sound is soothing and your bed feels like a sanctuary. There is no place you would rather be.

2. Finding Money You Didn’t Know You Had – You reach into your pocket and find a $20 bill from the last time you wore these jeans. You aren’t rich, but you are richer than you were a second earlier.

3. Making Brief Eye Contact with Someone of the Opposite Sex – You pass him/her on the street or in the subway. He/she glances up at you momentarily, making direct eye contact in a way that seems to communicate a subtle curiosity. For a split second it makes you think… and then it’s gone.

4. Skinny Dipping – There is something mysteriously liberating about being naked in a body of water. You are naked, but it feels natural, a sense of unrefined freedom.

5. Receiving a Real Letter or Package via Snail Mail – E-mail has become the primary source of written communication. Most snail mail these days is junk mail. When you check the mail and find a real letter or package from someone you know, excitement overtakes you as you tear into this rare gift.

6. Making the Yellow Light - It’s one of the most common simple pleasures, the act of beating the pack. As you blaze through the yellow light you glance in your rearview to see all the cars behind you stopping at the red light. Yes! You made it!

7. Telling a Funny or Interesting, True Story - One of the most enticing roles you lead in life is that of the storyteller. You love to share stories, especially those that will captivate your audience with deep curiosity and humor. There are few things more satisfying than telling a true story that others enjoy listening to.

8. Seeing a Friend Stumble Over Himself – As you walk across the street with your friend, he fails to accurately address the curb on the other side. He trips and stumbles around momentarily before regaining his footing, then swiftly attempts to play it off like nothing happened. This can be a hilarious sight if the moment is right.

9. Hearing the Right Song at the Right Moment - It doesn’t matter what the setting is, hearing the right song for that moment is one of those simple pleasures in life that instantly lifts your spirits. You could be driving home from work, hanging out at a bar with friends, or jogging. When the right song rattles your ear drums the entire meaning of life seems crystal clear.

10. The First Sip of a Beverage When You’re Thirsty – You just finished mowing the lawn or taking a long jog. The only thing on your mind is an ice-cold glass of water. When you are really, really thirsty, that first sip of any liquid beverage is sheer bliss.

11. Catching a Glimpse of Bare Skin on the Opposite Sex – For guys, it’s when the waitress bends over a little too far. For girls it’s seeing that buff guy in a Speedo. Either way, when you see a bit more skin than you were expecting on the opposite sex, you can’t help but to smirk on the inside.

12. Saying the Same Thing Simultaneously – There is a moment of silence. Then all of the sudden you and your friend blurt out the same exact set of words simultaneously. This rare occurrence is something to smile about.

13. The Pull-Through Parking Spot – You pull into a parking spot and are delighted to see the availability of the parking spot immediately in front of you. You pull through to the spot in front so that when you return to the car you can drive forward out of the parking spot. Why? Because driving backwards is a pain in the butt.

14. Realizing You Have More Time to Sleep – Something abruptly awakens you and you think it’s time to get up. Then you squint over at your alarm clock and realize you still have 2 more hours to sleep. A warm euphoric feeling shoots though your body as you glide gracefully back to your dreams.

15. People Watching – Sitting there on your bench you can see people in every direction. Tall people, small people, thin and plump. Blond, brunette, and redhead alike. Each of them has a different stride and a unique expression. As you drift from body to body you are mesmerized by what you see.

16. Putting On Clothes Straight from the Dryer – As soon as the dryer buzzes, you pull out your clothes and put them on. They feel soothingly warm on your skin and emit a fresh-scented aroma into the air. A sentiment of ease comes over you as you head out to conquer the day.

17. A Familiar Smell – You just pulled into your parent’s driveway and opened the car door. You haven’t been home in a long while. You smell familiarity in the air, the scent of a large pine tree in the neighbor’s yard. As you head through the front door, more familiar smells consume your senses. Gosh, it feels good to be home…

18. The Feeling You Get When Your Idea Works – You have been struggling to resolve a complex problem all day and you just can’t seem to get it right. Filled with frustration, you decide to exercise one last idea before calling it a night. You’ve had many ideas before that failed miserably… but this time it works.

19. Fresh, Clean Bed Sheets – You yank at the corner of the bedspread to create just enough space to slide your body under the freshly cleaned sheets. The sheets feel cool to the touch. Everything seems so clean, like nobody has ever slept in this bed before.

20. A Beautiful View – As the car veers around the side of the mountain you gaze out the passenger window. It’s a clear, sunny day and you can see the entire valley below filled with wild flowers and bright green vegetation. The scenery reminds you of something you once saw in National Geographic. But here it is live, right before your eyes.

21. Reminiscing About Old Times with Your Closest Friends – Pink Floyd once said “the memories of a man in his old age are the deeds of a man in his prime”. There is no simple pleasure more satisfying than recounting the greatest moments of your life with your closest friends who lived these moments alongside you.

22. Receiving an Unexpected Compliment – It’s been an average day. Nothing really great has happened, but nothing terrible occurred either. This monotonous day has put you in a dreary mood. Unexpectedly, an older, attractive lady taps you on the shoulder, calls you “handsome” and says she loves your shirt. The day just got a whole lot better.

23. Having a Good Laugh – Laughter is the greatest cure of all. Life is extraordinary in the moments when you are laughing so hard you can barely breathe. These moments of deep laughter are divine in the sense that they cleanse your mood and set your mind on a positive track.

24. The Feeling After a Healthy Workout - It’s a giddy feeling of self accomplishment; the one true activity that actually makes you feel better and look better simultaneously. When you walk out the front door of the gym you are on top of the world.

25. The Celebration in the Instant Something Makes Sense – Even now that it has explained to you for the third time, you just don’t understand how it works. Everyone else seems to understand but you. Then out of the blue the dots connect in your mind. You finally get it, and it feels great!

26. Relaxing Outdoors on a Sunny Day – As you relax sprawled out in a lawn chair, the sun warms your skin and a light breeze keeps the temperature comfortable. Birds are chirping merrily in the trees behind you. You are at complete peace with the environment.

27. Holding Hands with Someone You Love – Every time she grabs your hand you are overcome with an awareness of how much she means to you. Holding hands is sensual and physically intimate, yet subtle. There are few people you allow to hold your hand, so when it happens you can be sure that the moment is special.

28. Playing in the Water – Water marvels people of all ages. From jumping in puddles as a child, to doing cannon balls in the pool as an adolescent, to enjoying a cocktail in the Jacuzzi as an adult… water is enjoyable.

29. Making Someone Smile – You notice that your colleague has been under a great deal of stress with meeting a deadline, so you take it upon yourself to complete one of her indirect responsibilities for her. As soon as she realizes what you did, she comes into your office with a big smile on her face. “Thank you”, she says. You just hit two birds with one stone, because making her smile just made your day.

30. Finishing What You Started – You just finished up a big project you’ve been working on for the last few months, or maybe you just finished your first marathon… Either way, you finalized what you set out to accomplish. The feeling of self accomplishment you get when you finish what you started is by far one of the most rewarding simple pleasures life has to offer.

All American Rejects

2009-11-03T22:17:00.002+08:00

Some pictures from All American Rejects concert at Bukit Jalil, KL last Saturday from Joyce's camera. Lazy to drag my SLR there. Having a hard time uploading the videos though.

AAR rawks...

Migraigne

2009-10-30T19:11:00.003+08:00

aka. Migraine.

Had one this morning. Fucked me up.

Was perfectly normal until I was reading the newspaper and having breakfast at McD earlier this morning when the aura started to happen.

From wiki, it states that migraine occurs in 4 phases:

The prodrome, which occurs hours or days before the headache.
The aura, which immediately precedes the headache.
The pain phase, also known as headache phase.
The postdrome.

So this aura happened; mine was visual. Words and letters started disappearing on the newspaper, followed by blurry vision and scotoma. I knew from experience (I had a history of migraine before...the last being many months ago.) that I was gonna be fucked.

We had to complete our partial denture clasp making today. I hurried to finish mine. Luckily I only had to change one of the clasp. Right after I finished, it struck. The pain phasa aka. headache phase. It was so dead painful, it numbed me from any other activity.

Then, nausea seeped in. According to wiki, nausea occurs in almost 90 percent of patients, and vomiting occurs in about one third of patients. I was the 90% and that one third...which had me throwing up my bubur ayam McD in the toilet bowl. Yuck?

I couldn't stand it no more...so I had Wong to fetch me home. And I slept like a dog for hours. LoL.

Anyway, feeling better now. Thanks Jin, Chiew Yee, Wong & Ken for the help though.

Stop

2009-10-30T00:55:00.003+08:00

We all need a stop sign at some point in our lives...

(Berhenti = Stop)

To appreciate who we have...

To be grateful for what we have...

And to thank for what has been given...

The 1 month break

2009-10-27T22:23:00.002+08:00

The past 1 month break in short:

#1. Post-exam BBQ celebration right after exam with coursemates. 'This is how we roll'

#2. Melaka trip with 7 other course mates before we went back to our hometowns respectively. (note: More pictures will be @ Facebook when the upload works) Had a blast.

#3. Back @ Kuching for 3 weeks+. Same old same old. Still, it's good to be back. Did nothing much though; hanged out with friends, took part in some Dota competition, watched few movies, ate few burgers, drove around alot...

#4. Visited the new Sarawak DUN complex. Damn grand building on the riverbanks of Sarawak River. Too bad weren't granted entry in the building itself.

#5. I turned twenty one. Thanks to my family, relatives & friends for making it happen. Simple but meaningful celebration.

#6. Met up with long lost friends, Dex & Farid, aka. 'The FFA' reunion.

#7. Got a new laptop, its a Dell Studio XPS 13". Wanted a Mac initially, but in the end settled for this one. Laptop kept crashing badly the first few days of getting it, which made me doubt the quality and make. Thankfully its all good now.

#8 Sister's graduation. Lol. She graduated faster than me! I still have 3 years to struggle through...piff!

Lockerz.com

2009-09-30T13:41:00.007+08:00

No it's not an online locker site or service.

Lockerz.com

At first glance the layout seems boring and plain. So what is it?

"LOCKERZ is a free membership site that offers original content, commerce and community for Generation Z."

Well in short, it's a reward based site which offers its members points in exchange for gifts.

How to earn points?

Points can be obtained by completing surveys, inviting friends or simply by logging in daily.

Complete a simple daily question/survey.

Points earned can be redeemed for gifts and merchandise.

Sounds too good to be true? Must be a catch right?

Yeah...the catch is that membership is purely by invitation only.

But no worries!

I have free invites to give away! To earn the invites drop your email address in the comment box or click on the 'free invites' link below. (I won't spam your email address and the link below is perfectly safe)

CLICK HERE FOR FREE INVITES or drop your email in the comment box

It's that simple!

Oktorbar

2009-09-24T12:36:00.003+08:00

O hai there!

Just a micro update here while waiting for lunch to be served. It has been nearly a month since the last post here after a self declared "study hiatus". Well, the exams are now over, thankfully I passed all, and here I am enjoyed a month long holiday back at Kuching.

Past week was pure torture waiting for the results after the finals and the oh-so-kinteo viva selections. But still, enjoyment never strayed far away. Managed to naik bukit enjoy cold air (Genting) while some of them enjoyed winning and losing. Went Malacca for a day's trip. Had a BBQ party over at a friend's place. Yet to sort the hundreds of pics from the cam...so hang on for the pictures!

Well, I can say that life is fairly good so far.
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But...what's making it better now?

Mom's cooking. Teehee! =p

I am...

2009-08-29T17:16:00.002+08:00

Sien = bored

Short Hiatus

2009-08-23T13:11:00.002+08:00

Blogging will be on a temporary hiatus as I will be busy preparing for my 2nd year finals coming in 2 weeks time.

Meanwhile, you can stalk me by following my micro updates on my Twitter on the sidebar.

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Owh...Selamat Berpuasa and Selamat Hari Merdeka!

15 Malaysia

2009-08-17T18:55:00.005+08:00

Click on the banner below if you are a fan of locally produced short films:

15 Malaysia is a short film project. It consists of 15 short films made by 15 Malaysian filmmakers. These films not only deal with socio-political issues in Malaysia, they also feature some of the best-known faces in the country, including actors, musicians and top political leaders.

You may think of them as funky little films made by 15 Malaysian voices for the people of Malaysia!

The site is offically launched today. Each of the films are released on different dates starting today and are available for download once available.

Here's the first video entitled 'Potong Saga' featuring Namewee and a few local castings.

For more info, click on the banner above or at the sidebar. Or be a fan of 15 Malaysia on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/15malaysia or follow 15 Malaysia on Tweeter: http://twitter.com/15malaysia

Woodstock 69'

2009-08-15T23:22:00.002+08:00

It's been 40 years since Woodstock 69'.
A time of great hippies, the star spangled banner & when Hendrix was hailed God.

IMO, they need to bring this shit back.

Think Family

2009-08-10T22:58:00.001+08:00

Funeral. A touching commercial directed by the late Yasmin Ahmad

"Funeral" is a new TV commerical launched by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) which looks at relationships in a different light, through a woman at her husband's funeral. Ultimately, the TVC celebrates the beautiful imperfections that make a relationship perfect. This is fresh off MCYS latest Viewers' Choice 2008 win for last year's Family TVC which promotes the importance and value of family bonding.

UM in the 60s & 70s

2009-08-03T00:18:00.003+08:00

I REMEMBER WHEN... We had a ball in Universiti Malaya

2009/08/02

Many years ago, Universiti Malaya was the scene of hippie parties, disco dancing and social agitation. UM Alumni exco member Datuk Ghazali Yusoff recalls those heady days for ARMAN AHMAD.

Datuk Ghazali Yusoff (left); Datuk Hatijah Ayob when a UM student was the Non-Hostellers' Organisation Queen of 1966.

AFTER finishing high school, I enrolled at Universiti Malaya in 1965. I studied there for three years, taking a double major in Economics and Geography.

Looking back, I would say that those were some of the best years of my life.

UM in the 1960s and 1970s was a far cry from what it is today. It was after all, the first university in the country.

The best and brightest minds went there to prepare themselves to become the foundations on which our country would be built on.

But UM wasn't just a boring university. It also had a vibrant arts scene. Being the social secretary of the student union, I was deeply involved.

I had to organise numerous events, including fashion shows, talentime and beauty contests as well as other social functions.

My wife, Datuk Hatijah Ayob, and I had a great time in university. She was the Non-Hostellers' Organisation Queen of 1966.

We had a tea dance every second Sunday and we would have Victor Felix and his Hawaian Rhythmics playing while practically the whole campus gyrated on the dance floor.

But it was a difficult job being social secretary. You were under a lot of pressure to organise the best events. If you did not, a lot of people would be unhappy, and they would let you know.

Despite my hectic schedule, I still managed to play in a band. The band was known as the Sandy Lads and I was the band leader.

Professor A.A. Sandosham had donated the instruments, so the band was named in honour of him. We used to play at all the dances and social functions. We had a grand time.

I was also co-founder of the Speaker's Corner but that's a different story.

Every weekend, there would be an event on campus. Nowadays, you don't see this in UM.

In those days, we would organise a ball anytime we felt like it. Of course, the major balls were the ones held during orientation and convocation.

The students would come dressed to the nines. Everyone was smart-looking.

By 1969, Flower Power was influencing the campus a bit too much. By then, the campus was becoming too casual and the hippie movement seemed prevalent.

In the early 1960s, we had been very particular about the image of the university.

We were playful. But at the same time, we were responsible.

We respected our freedom. Those who spoke at the speaker's corner were very careful with what they said so that they didn't hurt other people's feelings.

The students knew how to treat freedom of speech in a responsible manner. The crowd would tell you if you went overboard. There was this in-built discipline on campus.

Having told you about all the fun we had, I must add that we were also very socially and politically aware.

During the Indonesian Confrontation, we handed a letter of protest to Indonesia for their part in the conflict.

We gave it to General Jatikusomo, the Indonesian ambassador in Malaysia.

We had a meeting with him in his residence. He served us good food (which as students we most welcomed) before he accepted our protest letter.

We also handed a letter of protest to the Philippines ambassador to Malaysia when their country claimed Sabah.

We thought the claim was not justified. Just like the Indonesian ambassador, we were accorded every respect at the embassy and the hospitality, including food, was great.

I remember how we went to Tunku Abdul Rahman's office to raise the point with him. We went there on dozens of motorcycles.

We brought him to the Selangor Club field on a motorbike where we hoisted him in the air and shouted "Merdeka"!

The police were very angry with us for pulling off that stunt.

They asked: "How could you treat the Prime Minister like that?"

But Tunku Abdul Rahman didn't seem to mind.

Many famous people came to UM to give talks. They broadened the minds of the students and influenced their thinking.

Whenever there was a visit by foreign dignitaries, they would make an appearance in UM.

Congressman Richard Nixon visited in 1966 and gave a talk on the Vietnam War.

Even Prince Phillip (husband of Queen Elizabeth II), visited the university.

In the early 1970s, things started to change in UM. The Malay Language Society began to become overprotective and too nationalistic. They had good intentions, but they stymied personal and social development with their own set of values.

When that happened, we saw the beginning of racial polarisation, and sadly, the government did not intervene positively.

We were the leading university at that time and people referred to us whenever they set up their universities and campuses.

Then came the University and University Colleges Act of 1971, and frankly, that was the end of it all.

What we see in universities today is a reflection of the changes UM went through in the early 1970s. Today, universities are rather dull places.

I'm very sad for the way things are going because we had a very good start in building a Malaysian spirit in UM.

We must try and help Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak make his 1Malaysia concept a success -- back to the true spirit of Merdeka and all it stands for.

A truly united 1Malaysia.

Source

The Show

2009-08-02T18:42:00.004+08:00

Guess who was making such a crowd at One Utama this afternoon:

It's Lenka with her show!

For those who don't know who Lenka is, she's an actress turned singer from Down Under famous for her hit song "The Show" which is currently used as a theme song in one of TM Net's advertisements.

Lenka's The Show

Couldn't get any decent pictures though due to the crowd and my short lens but she sounds just the same in her live performance, which is great!

Flame

2009-07-28T22:36:00.005+08:00

Snippet: RIP Yasmin Ahmad. Your inspirational films and advertorials will be missed.

Lighting up the candle.

Shot taken on the day the electricity was cut for more than 24hours.

2nd half of the sem.

2009-07-23T19:50:00.006+08:00

Snippet: Local film director, Yasmin Ahmad (of the Sepet fame) suffered a stroke earlier this evening and is placed under ICU at the moment. More here: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/7/23/nation/20090723163731&sec=nation)

Been awhile I've updated with some actual blogging. Random picture spams and micro-blogging through Twitter has somewhat taken over. Anyway...

1) The haze is back and getting worse. Since I got back here after my holiday break last Sunday, it has been hazy nearly every day. Heck, another reason to wear those flu masks? Owh, and Malaysia has recorded it's first H1N1 death, although the deceased died to due other complications arising from the deadly flu.

2) The dean of our faculty together with a few 'bigshots' of the university called for a meeting with the parents last Sunday. On such short notice, many could not make it. The purpose: To get our opinion and votes in changing our course degree. It was proposed (actually, this was planned long time ago according to some) that 5+0 Mahsa/Trisakti DDS programme is to be changed to Mahsa University College DDS programme. Meaning, the Trisakti & Indonesia part is striked out.

So I wasnt there, but from what I heard, the 'bigshots' were going pro Mahsa all the way, to the extend that they could offer it better here. And those present were required to summit the votes on that day itself, either to stick with the Mahsa/Trisakti DDS programme or the full Mahsa DDS programme. After some debate, with some parents requiring time to consider, they gave us a few days time. But in actual fact, nothing could be done as it was rumored that the contract with Trisakti had already been terminated and the parents opinion/voting thingy was just a showface gimmick.

3) The following day, Monday, another meeting was held for those not present on Sunday. And they passed us these forms for us to agree or disagree on the change.

However, one check at the form and you'll find that there is no 'Disagree' option to strike out. In a way, it was sort of indirectly forcing us to sign the agreement.

Some delayed as much as possible, but I guess the end result is very much obvious; we are now DDS (Mahsa).

4) Mid semester exam results will be out next week according to our coordinator. No questions asked or else further delay by authority. The following few weeks up to our finals will be summarized in 4 letters = B.U.S.Y. All the best to my coursemates. May you repeat less in your practicals and drill more into your gray matter. =p

5) During the meeting on Monday, it was proposed that we are going to have a Dental Council. A BOD (Board of Directors) was recently formed but abolished shortly because we were told to include the DT's (Dental Technologists) & DSA's (Dental Surgery Assistants) as well when the namelist was to be summited. Very typical of Mahsa = lambat tapi boleh (but on the brighter side, it applies to fees as well. =D)

6) The new students guidebook is out, supposedly for the incoming batches. (Hey! I'm on the front cover! lol)

Haha...just a small picture lah. Anyway, we didn't had the time to go through it fully but a few things caught our attention. So, future prospective students, please take note of this: (and the underlined captions)

Somehow the fee is increased to RM70 000 per annum. Which makes it RM350 000 for the whole 5 years course. Which is an increase of nearly 100k! @@
(EDIT: due to the numerous inquiries i get regarding this fee increase...do take not that it has not been implemented yet. the guidebook is not made official yet. so incoming intakes which is this September, the fee is still rm260k (as of August 09'))

And...

Medium of Instruction includes BM!

7) My housemates & I forgot to pay the electric bill. So for 30 hours, we were literally suffering.

8) On a brighter side, I ate durian! YAY!

Random Shots

2009-07-16T23:04:00.002+08:00

Post-It 1

2009-07-06T19:01:00.002+08:00

~ Just being random ~

Urbanscapes 2009 Photolog

2009-06-28T22:51:00.003+08:00

Went to Urbanscapes, the city's biggest creative art festival yesterday! Gave last year's a skip, so made a point not to miss this one. Plus I had 4 free tickets thanks to KLUE! Photos ahead:

#1 The white tents with a variety of booths selling all sorts of things, from graphic tees and fashio accessories to keychains and badges.

#2 I didn't went alone though. This is Putera & Joyce, the quirky couple. =)

#3 Some went alone however, like the person who left this message on the name card exchange wall.

#4 Plenty of artworks on display. Here are fishes in colored bowls made of newspaper cuttings?

#5

#6 Tapau a monster?!

#7 The crowd inside the main exhibition center.

#8 I spotted Smashpop checking out the Twitter feed.

#9 Unique wall made up of names of artists, writers, directors, etc

#10 The Box, showcasing live acoustic music

#11 Stand up comedian entertaining the crowd outside

#12 The Sunset Disco with a band playing.

#13 Stall selling palate palettes, not art palettes!

#14 There were also street performers around, like this creative ideas group

#15 Buskers with a sax

#16 Some spinning thingamagik'

#17 Drum circle performance by Tugu Drum Circle

#18 Open air theater plays

#19 The marketplace selling tons of stuff. Bought a CD, keychain and a notebook.

#20 Plenty of graphic tees on sale

#21 And graphic underwear as well! Haha!

#22 Various shots around the venue

#23

#24

#25

#26

#27 Pop Shuvit performing at the X-Lawn Stage. They even did a cover of "Smooth Criminal" in tribute to the late MJ!

#28 The lovely Yuna serenading the crowds.

#29 This two promoting their stall with a quirky sign. The fella on the left was saying: Come take picture, without me, have to pay. But with me in it, no need pay!

End of post! To sum up Urbanscapes in 1 word: HOT! Hot performances, hot displays, hot merchandise, hot chicks, hot weather!

Attention

2009-06-24T17:00:00.002+08:00

Attention all DDS mates:

1) From Harvin's blog:" Someone's thumb drive in our class is actually affected with a worm. To be exact,Its a W32/Forbot-J Spyware Worm which will allows others to access the computer, the worm itself steals information, reduces system security and it installs itself in the windows registry".

For more info and how to remove it, click HERE. (it'll link you to Harvin's blog). Thanks to Harvin for the notification!

2) I have a friend whose cousin brother is working with keywords from google to generate revenue and his latest project would be to start up a dental related informative website targeted at layman.

He is looking for dental students to write articles for this website and the students will be paid from RM20-Rm100 per article, depending on the length.

It is a freelance job. :)

Interested parties can contact me or jolenelai@gmail.com.

The Epic PTPTN story

2009-06-19T17:38:00.016+08:00

So...here's the so-called epic PTPTN loan story which had me waiting for nearly a year to try get the loan, and till today, has failed. =(

1 year + ago
The university, MAHSA, told us that PTPTN loan officers were coming and those who wanted to apply were told to get ready a few things before that, eg. parents pay slip, bank account at CIMB, SSPN account, etc.

The day the officers arrived, we were briefed and had to fill forms. Everything went smoothly. Nearly 2/3s of the class applied, with high hopes of getting it.

And that was the start of the never-ending problems...

Few weeks after summiting the application forms
The list of successful applicants were published. Horror was on our faces when we found out that only a handful of those whom applied got the loan. Mainly, those who did STPM, the government matriculation & A-Levels. The rest of us, including myself, who did other foundation programs like Aimst & CPU, failed to obtain the 100k loan. And we were left clueless.

An inquiry to the department was made and shockingly, we found out that other foundation programs weren't yet approved due to complications between our university and the PTPTN department. The very reasons of that still remains unclear until today. And to think that we were told earlier that our PTPTN loan will be settled by the university, was all bull-crap.

So, the 'rejected' bunch of us including Harvin, Joyce Ng, Vincent Gan, Vincent Ng and a few others who did the other foundations we made to wait till this issue is to be resolved.

We just had to wait for our university to inform us. And we waited...for months & months. We filled many inquiries and waited for notices to be pasted. The answer was usually: "Wait, we will inform you people" You people You people You people...

So, whenever the university called us demanding for our fees, we just shot back at them, saying our loan hasn't been settled.

October 2008
Our first year ended, and this was during our year end break. I found out that the PTPTN loan can be applied online. After much persuasion by my mom, I filled in my details online and had the application approved...virtually.

By then...the loan had dropped 10k. (100k for 10 semesters. With each semester gone by, the loan drops by 10k)

Finding out the loan was approved, I was initially happy that all we needed to do was just summit the printed forms to the PTPTN office, wait for the confirmation and that was the end of it.

But I was wrong.

When classes resumed, Harvin, Vinc G, Joyce Ng & myself went to summit the forms directly to the PTPTN office somewhere near our university.

And we were told that it has to go through the university.

And when we wanted to summit it through the university, we were again told by the department to wait for the PTPTN officers to drop by the uni.

Back to the waiting, and totally frustrated. not knowing that the issue was gonna get worse months later.

Early 2009
We were informed one day that the officers from PTPTN would be coming over in the next few days to verify and collect our documents.

It was on such short notice that we had to rush to get our certs and documents reverified because they had changed a few regulations. To get them certified, we had to go through the college. The biggest problem was waiting for our result slip which was delayed for months due to reasons again yet to be identified. We need the results slip as we were applying from the 2nd year onwards, thus requiring our year one results.

The many reasons were were told: our dean undergoing surgery, the Indonesia university had to recheck the exam slips, the Indonesian dean was away and couldn't sign the result slips - our course is sort of twinned with an Indon university.

Owh, there was this one lady working with the uni admission department who frustrated us so many times. She told us that we couldn't get different witnesses for our certs. Our certificates weren't complete lah. This lah, that lah. Damn tulan.

And when we did get the documents done in time, we were told that they had postponed the session.

Harvin made a few desperate phone calls directly to the management, even to the point where his dad had to come over a few times to resolve the issue. (Thanks for representing us btw Harv.)Yet, it was back to that four letter word: Wait. And, every time we were told that, we had our four letter word F**k coming out from our mouths.

March 2009
Eventually, the officers came. We went to summit...and got rejected the second time.

This time the issue was: "Mahsa has yet to obtain the verification that the university accepts students other than those from STPM & government matriculation to enter the dentistry course

Ridiculous? It's sort of telling us that we were immigrants...unofficial students of this course, and we were taken in without the proper papers.

It was rumored that the university lost the black & white documents and had to reapply them with PTPTN.

We were told to wait for Mahsa to obtain the verification papers and come again when they drop by next time.

...

A special briefing was held few weeks later regarding this issue. And a huge bomb was dropped on our heads:

"The university has gotten the verification. (we were shown the verification letter.) So you people can reapply when the officers come sometime in June this year. However, since most of you had applied during the 2nd year and not obtain the full loan, we can still help you obtain it. By printing a new offer letter for you people, we will change your date of admission into this course, making you starting the course this year. So who wants to change their offer letter please write down your name...etc."

WTF?! Wait there's more...

"But there is gonna a problem; by the time you people graduate later, the university only receive the payment from PTPTN for 4 years because of the change in the admission date. Therefore, you people certificate we cannot release until you have made the full 5 years payment. So kena tunggu 1 tahun untuk PTPTN bank in duit boleh dapat certificate." Which is to say wait another year for the cert or use your own money and pay the balance and get the cert.

Dilemma I tell you. F*** dilemma that time.

In the end Harvin, Vinc. G., Joyce & I decided not to change ours.

June 2009
2 days ago - The dean's secretary announced that PTPTN officers is having a session right this very moment. We were all stunned. Non of us brought along our documents because of such short notice that the PTPTN officers were here.However, our classmate, Mr. Mike, found out through the notice stuck at the admin block of the university. He only told his close friends, the rest of us only found out during the announcement.

He is slowly adding new enemies to his name.

The good news is PTPTN will be here the next day and the following day. The bad news, on both days, we are at different campuses and wont be meeting them except today.

1 day ago - We were suddenly told that those who didn't change their offer letter previously had to obtain a letter of notification from stating that we were students of the university.

Luckily Harvin was there to help us with the letter. He rushed to the other campus just to catch the briefing.

Today - 5 of us skipped the last class hoping to catch the PTPTN session. The surviving 4 of us plus Vinc. Ng who just got his documents ready yesterday and hadn't complete them.

We reached the other campus at 12.15 but was told to come back at 2.30pm, after the break.

Typical of them...

We finally caught up with the officers...but was delivered one final but deadly blow.

Vinc. Gan had his rejected because he required a letter from our foundation (Aimst) stating we completed our course there.
I encountered the same problem as well because we were from the same foundation course. (In the end, Vincent got approved because he had a copy of the statement at home and he had his dad fax it over. I called Aimst but was required to write in to obtain it. ****)
Harvin had his rejected because he had a C in a subject during his foundation. I feel bad for him after all this waiting and rushing.
Joyce had hers rejected as well because she did Biology for her 2nd semester only during her foundation, not throughout her whole course.
A few of our juniors had theirs rejected because of the lack of the foundation letter from other colleges.

Vinc. Ng however had his approved. I have to give in to him. Managed to complete, forge and check his documents all on the spot and send it in. He is a living proof of last minute work'.

None of us were told any of this before. Not by the college or PTPTN. Even the PTPTN officers pitied all of us. So much so for all the waiting.

So for the time being
I have to wait till the next session which is in September to reapply. My documents were complete but because of that one letter.

I bet you are already confused after reading this post. What say me? FML.

Class Photos

2009-06-07T18:54:00.004+08:00

Class photos, aside from all the formalities, there's always those candid, informal and funny ones.

Like these from the past:

The secondary school era.

St Joseph's class of 5A 05'. Owh, and check out the "Mafia" gang behind led by crazy Franklin.

The college era.

Class of C4. AIMST Foundation.

The university era.

Mahsa's DDS Batch One.

Ahh...great pictures eh?

But when it comes down to pure informality and wackiness...you've got to hand it over to these guys and girls here.

Seriously, this is like the epitome of candid class photos:

#1 Pouring buckets of water over those unsuspecting smartly dressed classmates!

Source unknown. But this is a photo where everyone's gonna have a wet look.

#2 Two girls making out in the picture!

Source: Anderson Junior College, Singapore class photo. Apparently this photo was even auctioned!

Epic photos? I thought so...till I found this:

3# Kids showing the middle finger!

Holy s***?!

Spider Drawing

2009-06-06T19:07:00.000+08:00

Below is the complete email conversation that Adelaide man David Thorne claims he had with a utility company chasing payment of an overdue bill.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.19pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Our records indicate that your account is overdue by the amount of $233.95. If you have already made this payment please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.37pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
I do not have any money so am sending you this drawing I did of a spider instead. I value the drawing at $233.95 so trust that this settles the matter.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.07am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Thankyou for contacting us. Unfortunately we are unable to accept drawings as payment and your account remains in arrears of $233.95. Please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.32am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
Can I have my drawing of a spider back then please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.42am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear David,
You emailed the drawing to me. Do you want me to email it back to you?

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.56am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,

Yes please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 12.14pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Attached

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 09.22am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Whose spider is that?

Dear Jane, Are you sure this drawing of a spider is the one I sent you? This spider only has seven legs and I do not feel I would have made such an elementary mistake when I drew it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.03am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, Yes it is the same drawing. I copied and pasted it from the email you sent me on the 8th. David your account is still overdue by the amount of $233.95. Please make this payment as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.05am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Automated Out of Office Response

Thankyou for contacting me. I am currently away on leave, traveling through time and will be returning last week.

Regards, David.

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.08am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Hello, I am back and have read through your emails and accept that despite missing a leg, that drawing of a spider may indeed be the one I sent you. I realise with hindsight that it is possible you rejected the drawing of a spider due to this obvious limb ommission but did not point it out in an effort to avoid hurting my feelings. As such, I am sending you a revised drawing with the correct number of legs as full payment for any amount outstanding. I trust this will bring the matter to a conclusion.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 2.51pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, As I have stated, we do not accept drawings in lei of money for accounts outstanding. We accept cheque, bank cheque, money order or cash. Please make a payment this week to avoid incurring any additional fees.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 3.17pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

I understand and will definately make a payment this week if I remember. As you have not accepted my second drawing as payment, please return the drawing to me as soon as possible. It was silly of me to assume I could provide you with something of completely no value whatsoever, waste your time and then attach such a large amount to it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Tuesday 14 Oct 2008 11.18am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Attached

Get Her

2009-06-05T02:47:00.002+08:00

OMG ROFL HAHAHA

Penang Trip Day 2 & 3

2009-05-30T12:26:00.003+08:00

>

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Youtube Music Find 2

2009-05-29T01:24:00.002+08:00

Panic at the Disco - Northern Downpour

Mystery Jets - Half in Love with Elizabeth

.Two really cool B&W videos.

Penang Trip (Day 1 - 22-05-09)

2009-05-25T23:59:00.002+08:00

Back from the North

2009-05-24T23:12:00.004+08:00

Snippet: Owh, and to t1^g.j0.J1 aka. "Dino Hijau Joyce", you must have planted your finger nails under the tires...HAHAHAHA.

Just returned from Penang and Kedah this evening. More pictures to come. Meanwhile here's one taken at Air Itam Dam with the fellas!

Going up north

2009-05-21T20:07:00.002+08:00

BRB
On Vacation

I'll be heading off to Penang after class on Friday for a short visit.
Plus visiting Sungai Petani after nearly 2 years leaving that tiny place.

Youtube Music Like

2009-05-19T21:49:00.001+08:00

Wont Even Start

What happened
after last summer
when we broke up
in September

I havent seen you
Feels like a long time
Sometimes it still hurts
But I always get by

I still got a piece of you under my skin
Its always there no matter where Ive been

So if I ever see you on the street
Ill pretend that I didnt see
And turn my face
No use in small talk anyways

Because if I look into your eyes
Then Ill have to say goodbye
And thatll break my heart
So I wont even start
I wont even start

I wish you luck
And I wish it true
Thats the best
I can do for you

Cuz youll probably find love
In someone new
I have to let go
Yeah its hard to do

So if I run into you with your arm by his side
Just know itll cut me like a knife

So if I ever see you on the street
Ill pretend that I didnt see
And turn my face
No use in small talk anyways

Because if I look into your eyes
Then Ill have to say goodbye
And thatll break my heart
So I wont even start
I wont even start

Ill be ok, Ill be ok
Or thats what Ill say

So if I ever see you on the street
Ill pretend that I didnt see
And turn my face
No use in small talk anyways
Cuz if I look into your eyes
Then Ill have to say goodbye
And thatll break my heart
So I wont even start
Oh I wont even start
No I wont even start

Pimp My Mask

2009-05-18T23:04:00.003+08:00

Saw a few of these online. Made one of my own. Hahaha.

Gonna steal more masks tomorrow. xD

A Message

2009-05-10T22:24:00.003+08:00

To Mom:

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

To myself:
Dammit, weekend's over.

I Laughed So Hard

2009-05-08T23:40:00.003+08:00

OMG...I laughed till my tummy hurts.

This Made My Day

2009-05-04T21:05:00.000+08:00

15 mins ago.

=)

Redang Trip - Part 3

2009-04-30T13:02:00.004+08:00

Day 3

After the previous night's alcohol session, we were all struggling to get up early for the sunrise. But we managed to pull our lazy butts and head down to the beach. It was rewarding as this time, the skies were very nice.

Group photo of the 4 of us on the rocks

The two figures in the distance: Kien Yee & Fauzan

One of my favourite shots

Tired & sleepy

Breakfast, and again, drinking lots and lots of orange juice.

After breakfast we went back our rooms to catch a short nap before packing our stuff and checking out.

Spotted this munching squirrel

Waiting at the lobby bar for our shuttle to the jetty

Goodbye Pulau Redang

Reached Kuala Terrenganu by noon. The bus took us to some restaurant for lunch which was rather expensive. Since our flight was in the evening, we were then shuttled to Chinatown for a visit; or more like a walk under the hot sun. Some pictures from Chinatown:

Mini wonders of the world

After Chinatown, we rested at the resort's resthouse before boarding the bus to the airport.

And thus, concludes the Redang Trip!

Redang Trip Part 2

2009-04-29T13:06:00.004+08:00

Day 2 of the Redang Trip:

We woke up before 7am in hopes of catching the sunrise. Went to a rocky spot for the best view, but the skies were cloudy that morning, so the sunrise wasn't that spectacular.

A secret spot for taking sunrise pics

Alvin, Baha & Fauzan on the rocks.

Kien Yee again with his unusual acts

Few of the salvaged pictures which turned out pretty nice.

After sunrise, we headed to the dining hall for breakfast.

Bacon, toasted bread and baked beans. We kept taking glasses and glasses of orange juice like nobody's business. Hehe.

Our snorkeling trip was at 9am, this time at the marine park. Fed the fishes there with the bread we smuggled during breakfast. Pictures were in Alvin's camera, haven't got them yet.

After snorkeling, we went for lunch. Supposed to have another open sea snorkeling trip but we were too tired to go. So we spent the whole afternoon sleeping till dinner. LOL.

Dinner this time was a BBQ buffet. We ate and ate till we were all damn full that time.

Went for a stroll along the beach after dinner while hunting for souvenir shops. A few pictures of the beach at night.

Someone made this sand crocodile to scare unsuspecting people walking along the beach. Haha.

We took some group photos as well:

In front of the main resort

At the 'More-More Tea Inn' made famous in the Sammi Cheng & Richie Ren movie 'Summer Holiday'

Then, comes the alcohol session in our room.

Fauzan drinking coffee...haha. He and Gan were the non-drinkers that time.

At the end of finishing one bottle of Chivas & half bottle of Black Label:

Alvin, down at the balcony

Posing with the empty bottles.

After the drinking session, a few of us headed down to the beach again to makan angin.

Went to see the blue sand. Cool huh! It was produced by planktons according to Kien Yee. They somewhat glow when you brush the surface of the sand.

Then somehow, under the toxicity, Kien Yee & Baha went and bought another 10 cans of beer.

Which they drank while swimming in the pool!

Carlsberg advert?

In the end,

Kien Yee the ghost.

Day 3 coming up with the sunrise!

Redang Trip Part 1

2009-04-24T23:37:00.008+08:00

Warning: Picture spam. And this is only part 1. Meh!

Ahhh...the great Redang and its magnificent beaches as told by many. Never got a chance to experience it until now. It was holiday time and we need to destress from all that bacteria and drugs shit.

So, you get a beach resort, throw in 8 guys, 2 rooms, a dose of alcohol, some whacky madness and this is what you get:

DAY 1

Woke up around 5am and had Kien Yee's brother fetch us to Subang airport. First flight of the day and first time using Firefly Airlines.

Flight tickets.

We were pretty early to check in, and while waiting for the boarding gates to open, we hang around the airport. Had breakfast at Starbucks since was the first shop to open its doors that time.

Alvin & the 2 Vincents' gambling while waiting. Fauzan & Baha having a good chat. Kien Yee taking my picture.

Boarded a twin propeller plane which took us from west to east. Destination: Kuala Terengganu

Vincent, the only first time flyer in our group, sleeping in the plane.

Gives you the impression of flying in those old skool planes.

The 'backbones' of Malaysia

Kenyir Lake, damn huge with hundreds of those mini islets.

Reached Kuala Terengganu airport after an hour's flight journey to be greeted and ushered by a representative from the beach resort we were about to stay at.

Boon Siew walking towards the bus which then shuttled us to the jetty.

On the way to the jetty, I snapped this awesome floating mosque.

Kuala Terengganu is also known as Bandaraya Warisan Pesisir Air (translated Waterfront City?)

Intersection somewhere in KT.

Reached the jetty, but had to wait for the boat to fetch us over to the island. While waiting:

A group photo

Nik, Kien Yee, Boon Siew and I went for a short walk nearby. There's this bazaar opposite the road:

Nearby was a pasar selling a variety of things:

Including turtle eggs!

Kien Yee & Boon Siew bought apam balik with egg but didn't finish eating them because it didn't taste good:

While I wandered off snapping few more pictures:

Penarik Beca

Wet Market

Back at the jetty, Fauzan was spotted eating a leech.

Actually its kuih dodol. lol

Our boat finally arrived:

All looking damn semangat but ended up sleeping during the 1 hour+ boat ride to the island.

Reaching the Laguna owned jetty:

Alvin and his aviators

Was whisked into a waiting hall for a briefing by the staff upon reaching

And the huge group of people waiting for the shuttle to the main building for check in after the briefing

Finally, the wonderful sight of the beach!

On arrival, we were welcomed with refreshing drinks by the bar.

After that, registration and check in

I see me!

Followed by buffet lunch upstairs at the dining hall.

Somehow we were made to wait for nearly an hour for our room to be ready. We got pretty frustrated at this.

Spot the alcoholic in this picture. Haha

I wandered off again, to snap more pictures.

Laguna Redang Beach Resort; main building

Kien Yee & Boon Siew testing the water

Blue skies and crystal clear water. Just like a picture from the travel magazines.

A small wave.

If it wasn't for the hot sun, we would have jumped in straight away. Haha. Individual shots of me, Kien Yee & Boon Siew:

The unluckiest fella of the day was Alvin. 1st, he sprained his ankle the day before and on the day itself, liquor leaked from the bottle in his bag.

And the pillow smells of liquor now.

Our rooms, split in 3s and 4s:

The good thing is that we each had our own bed.

After putting our bags in the room, we had our first snorkeling trip at the open sea. It was my first time snorkeling in the open sea, so had a slight scare prior to it. But it was fun all in all. Ended up so tired, I could barely swim back to the boat. Didn't bring my SLR along, so don't have any pictures to share.

Had dinner and headed straight back to our rooms, tired to do anything but sleep. Day 1 ended with us retiring to bed at 10pm.

Tis' Over

2009-04-17T15:31:00.002+08:00

BEFORE EXAMS:

Burning the midnight candle? LOL. Reading those slides on the laptop is pure torture I tell you. Torture!

Mr. Wong in his study domain, reading up on drugs.

Indomee goreng + streaming football online + chatting on MSN + reading notes at the same time. Heh!? At times, went down to mamak to watch the quarter final legs of CPL.

Classmates in the lab, quarantined, and preparing for the OSPE paper, which was the last paper. Holiday mood was felt before this. Hah!

DiDi = focusing on her notes. Me = focusing the camera lens.

Mr. Lau & Mr. Wong in the library. Our schedule was 1-6pm: study, 6-8pm: break, 9-12am: study, 12-2am: dota, 2am-noon: sleep. Amazing?

AFTER EXAMS:

Right after our last paper yesterday, we went Petaling Street! Hunting for sunnies for our Redang trip this Monday. I didn't buy any though.

We had our lunch of wantan mee here at some hidden shop somewhere in Petaling Street. Seriously I would have never found out about this shop if it wasn't for them.

Headed to Mid Valley for a movie: 'He's Just Not That Into You'. Pretty darn nice romantic comedy. Had me chuckling all the way

Played a few rounds of pool while waiting the movie to start.

And on the same day, went to Kuala Selangor for dinner. Super cheap and delicious!

Ended the day with some kelip-kelip (firefly) watching at the firefly center nearby.

Supposed to have another yamcha session after that with some more buddies...but was too exhausted.

Anyway, feel's great exams are done with. Next up: Redang trip & my friends visit to my hometown next week!

1 jam

2009-04-04T21:50:00.003+08:00

I decided to call McDelivery for dinner. And they took 1 hour plus to reach here. Either it was the heavy rain or this 'special instruction':

#34. (04.04.09)

Cus boleh tunggu satu jam?!?!?!

New widget

2009-04-03T19:48:00.002+08:00

Just added a new widget on my blog. Some of you might have already noticed it. Its a small box at the bottom right corner with a showcase of blogs and their authors.

The widget is part of a network of bloggers, linked by YouthMedia. (YouthMEDIA is a blog promotion network for all bloggers aged between 15 to 35. The YouthMEDIA widget broadcasts the voice of young bloggers everywhere, helping blogs get discovered! - http://getyouthmedia.com)

So if your free, do visit the blogs under promo in the box. And why not get one for your blog as well at http://getyouthmedia.com!

Meanwhile, many thanks to those who promoted my blog and for dropping by as well! =)

Pixelated

2009-03-30T13:33:00.003+08:00

Exams are in a fortnight. No need to explain what I'm gonna be doing the coming days.

What I did during my 'last' final weekend of enjoyment (did I mention that the previous weekend?):
1) Played nearly 2 hours of badminton on Thursday. Forgot to warm up, arms were sore the next day.

#29. (26/03/09) Panglima Fauzan vs Hewitt.

2) Friday was homestaying day after a tired Thursday. Spent the whole day sleeping and watching movies at home. And also budget day. Ate economy rice for lunch and dinner. Total spent = less than rm15. Great!

3) Went out with Julian & Stephen again for a movie at Mid Valley. Watched Know1ng which was just another apocalyptic movie with the all so familiar end of the world concept. Movie rating: 6/10.

#30. (28/03/09) Roof of The Gardens @ MV.

4) Went to a photography expo (DCIM 2009) the very same day. Checked out a few cool lenses and molested a few cameras. Tempted to buy a new lenses in the future. Right now, I don't even have the cash to get a camera bag. Recession. Massive crowd, especially during when the models for a model search contest went on stage. It was more of a competition of who has the longest ~~dick~~ lenses among the photographers. Here's what I meant:

#31. (28/03/09) Gah! Even got ladders. @@

Imagine how hard is it to take a clear picture of the models. Here's a cropped one shot of one of the models; she had a cult following in Lowyat.net:

#32. (28/03/09) Stephen said she looked like a Japanese pornstar. LoLz.

5) Overnight at Stephen's place after that. Earth Hour passed by with a game of dota.

6) Somehow received quite a number of emails regarding Mahsa & the dentistry course. One of them was a mom who wanted to transfer her daughter who is currently studying over at Indonesia over to Mahsa. And even more shocking was a South Korean who emailed me regarding his intentions of studying over here! Cool. Owh, and Mahsa is now officially a University College:

#33. (29/03/09) The Sunday Star full page advertorial.

Anyway, less blog postings from now on...

Newtonian

2009-03-25T20:24:00.002+08:00

Ever heard of the 3rd Newtonian law?

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction

It applies for humans as well.

=)

Click it...I know you want to.

This Is...Part 2

2009-03-24T15:27:00.003+08:00

A continuation of the 'This Is' series. Most pictures were taken over the weekend. Messed up the picture quality though. @@ (Project 365 #22-28)

Blue skies. Room window

Jogoya buffet. Starhill. KL. Nice food. Nice price.

Red light. Crossing. very Malaysian

Vroom vroom

The heart of KL

Watchmen. Long Movie. Nice CG.

Red is in.

Tire'd Swing

2009-03-17T23:46:00.004+08:00

Ahh damn! Getting tired by the day. Fatigue is hitting me early. In fact, too early. By 12am, I'm unusually sleepy already. In a way, it does me healthy I guess. I think 8.00am classes are really a killer. Need more time to adjust to it. Even with after-class naps, I still feel sleepy during lectures. Especially during Dr. Hana's dental material class, which is usually the first class. Gawd, you could just yawn continuously. Owh, not to mention that we have to copy the slides as she forbids us from taking them. -_-

I found a simple remedy though:

Down those SOUR PLUMs like mad!!!

Wished weekends came sooner. TGIF! Make it TGIFSS (Thank God it's Friday, Saturday & Sunday!) I slept for 13 hours in total last Saturday. And I plan to do it coming weekend as well, unless I get called out for some outing, which usually happens. And if it does, there goes another night at a friends house...

Sigh.

Owh, and first semester finals in a month's time.

My rusty gears need oiling.

--

#20. (16.03.09) Failed lomo attempt no. 1: Sunset from the window.

#21. (17.03.09) Ice cubes.

The Streets

2009-03-16T21:50:00.002+08:00

Just like us...

are empty

#18. (14.04.09) 5am@Sri Petaling.

& busy

#19. (15.04.09) SS2 on a rainy day.

Moon & Water

2009-03-13T23:25:00.003+08:00

Tried two experimental type of photo shoots the past few days. One was taking water droplets by having a bowl of water in the sink and dripping water from the tap. It was surely hard to time those drops to perfection. 2 of my best shots here:

#17. (11.03.09) The droplet. Just before it hits the water surface

#18. (11.03.09) Villi? Worm?

Still need lots of improvement in timing these shots. And earlier, I tried taking pictures of the moon. Missed the full and bigger moon the day before. And making it hard was my miserable 55mm kit lens. A long term investment of a 200mm zoom lens would do me good though!

#19. (13.03.09) The moon. Edited & cropped.

Internet made my life busy. Hah

2009-03-10T22:44:00.003+08:00

2 more photos for the ongoing Proj365. Somehow, I noticed Flickr sometimes reduces the quality of the photos uploaded. =.=

#15. (09.03.09) Faces - coursemates. I like the various expressions and actions in this photo.

#16. (10.03.09) Dinner at Korean BBQ Restaurant, in celebration of Ken Cheah's birthday. Food was absolutely delicious. Service was very efficient. The catch: $$$. =D

Owh, and this song is stuck in my head all day long. The lyrics are so catchy.

Black Kids - I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You

You are the girl that I've been dreaming of ever since I was a little girl.
You are the girl that I've been dreaming of ever since I was a little girl.

One! I'm biting my tongue.
Two! He's kissin' on you.
Three! Oh, why can't you see?
One! Two! Three! Four!

The word's on the streets and it's on the news:
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you.
He's got two left feet and he bites my moves.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance! dance! dance! dance!
The second I do, I know we're gonna be through.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you.
He don't suspect a thing. I wish he'd get a clue.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance! dance! dance! dance!

You are the girl that I've been dreaming of ever since I was a little girl.
You are the girl that I've been dreaming of ever since, ever since.

One! I'm biting my tongue.
Two! He's kissin' on you.
Three! Oh, why can't you see?
One! Two! Three! Four!

The word's on the streets and it's on the news:
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you.
He's got two left feet and he bites my moves.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance! dance! dance! dance!
The second I do, I know we're gonna be through.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you.
He don't suspect a thing. I wish he'd get a clue.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance! dance! dance! dance!

One! You're biting my tongue.
Two! I'm kissin' on you.
Three! Is he better than me?
One! Two! Three! Four!

The word's on the streets and it's on the news:
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you.
He's got two left feet and he bites my moves.
I'm not gonna teach him how to dance! dance! dance! dance!

=)

Earth Hour

2009-03-09T22:06:00.001+08:00

Come together and support this one of a kind project. Earth Hour 2009: Malaysia.

Sign up now at Earth Hour Malaysia.

Black & Whites

2009-03-09T00:36:00.003+08:00

#11. (05.03.09) Shoes. Clockwise from top (if not mistaken); Vincent, Wye Sern, Me, Chiew Yee's

#12. (06.03.09) Corridor. Shot taken while visiting an orphanage together with some friends after class on Friday. Will post about the orphanage visit sometime in the future.

#13. (07.03.09) Ceiling. This one is from the college lobby. Taken randomly by pointing the camera somewhere. Purposely overexposed.

#14. (08.03.09) KL Sentral. Shot taken while waiting in line for the monorail tickets.

Wall & Water

2009-03-05T00:42:00.004+08:00

#9 (03.03.09) Wall photos @ Old Town Kopitiam. Had dinner there with my housemates. It was raining outside, and for the past few days, it rained everyday. There was a flash flood recently. Cars were submerged in certain parts of KL.

#10 (04.03.09) Water droplets from shower head. Nothing like a cold shower to wake me up in the mornings. Especially those darn 8am classes where I have to wake up extra early.

Out of Focus

2009-03-02T21:59:00.004+08:00

#8. (02/03/09) Subject: Out of focus. f/5.7 | 1/12sec | iso800 | 1000D

Over the weekend

2009-03-01T16:44:00.005+08:00

Went down to Mid Valley yesterday with the Wong brothers, Stephen, Justin & Wye Sern, who tagged along as well for a movie. Watched Street Fighter: Legend of Chun Li, which I give it a 3/5 rating. Just for Kristen Kruek's looks! Hah! Actually, movie could have been better if there were more Street Fighter characters and more fight scenes.

After the movie we lepak'ed around; watched a car show, went hunting for poker chips before having dinner at Kim Gary's. Lawson came by after dinner to fetch us to SS2 for a cyber session. Owh, since I brought my camera along as well, some random pictures:

Super long queue at GSC. Luck was definitely with me that day. Just went I was going walk to the back of the line, the PA announced that those who wanted to watch the movie Street Fighter & a few others were requested to line up some specific counter. And immediately to my left was that particular counter, so I found myself standing first in line automatically!

A photographer in action. Somemore, using the same camera model!

A spot of randomness caught on film.

Jack & Wye Sern

The Wong brothers. Julian & Jack.

Kid starting at me. Not many stares from people as well when I went around randomly snapping. Hmm...

Now this is a damn cool invention. Looks like a floating tap ain't it? In fact, there's a transparent rod supporting it. Picture taken at ROOM, a deco shop. Actually, I didn't notice the No-Cameras Allowed sign outside till I left the shop.

Candy booth.

The Honda City car show. Car looks so much better than its predecessor.

Poker chips. No my property though. Hehe. Alvin would surely want this!

Finally, two pictures for project 365:

#6. (28/02/09) Kid eating hamburger at McD, Mid Valley. Yum!

#7. (01/03/09) Damansara Uptown. The view from the 15th floor lift lobby.

Project 365 - Genting

2009-02-28T12:53:00.004+08:00

Had a multi-test last Friday. In the morning, 3 theory subjects in one paper. A first for me and also most of the class. But I think it was do'able lah. Later in the afternoon, sat for an English paper. =.=

In celebration, a few friends and I headed up to Genting Highlands in two cars at night. Some went to gamble, while a few of us just went for yamcha at Starbucks. Will post a longer post about it in the days to come.

A few pictures since I'm behind my so-called 'Project':

#3. (26/02/09) This is the recent me. Hair getting longer; mom says it looks horrible, sis says I look like lakia. LOL! Still not putting fat though. Hahaha.

#4. (27/02/09) A scale model of Genting Highlands. Couldn't get a nice outdoor picture at night, especially with the weather. (It was drizzling and rainy). Still, I like the chilly atmosphere up there. And the people...OMG, we arrived at 11.30 and there were still plenty of people around!

#5. (27/02/09) I like this picture very much. An old uncle standing on the left, most probably looking for profit at the casino. And in contrary on the right, the portrait of Uncle Lim, the man who build the very resort and had lots and lots of people trying to get their share of his 'treasure'.

Sarawak Mee

2009-02-25T18:32:00.004+08:00

#2. (25/02/09) This is Sarawak Mee or better known as Kolo Mee back at home. Came across only a handful of stalls in KL selling the mee, and this one is from Ming Tien Foodcourt, Taman Megah. The mee used is thicker than the usually thin kolo mee, but it tastes pretty alike. But of course the ones at home surely alot better lah! Haha!

Project 365

2009-02-24T23:35:00.003+08:00

"People will often say that their whole lives flashed before their eyes after they experienced a traumatic event. Perhaps it’s a bit morbid, but we think that sounds pretty incredible."
Quote from Photojojo

I've decided to take up my own Project 365 ,where I will be snapping and posting at least a picture each day. These photos will be tagged with a simple description. I'm very unsure about the outcome of this project since I tend to drift away easily into other things. Nevermind that; first picture of the project:

#1. (24/02/09) This is the view from my room window at night. The shophouses below, (Pelangi One Avenue) houses a few shops and stalls including mamak shop at the corner which I frequent nearly everynight for supper. A gathering place for shisha goers as well. The indomee goreng there is my favourite. The place gets packed every weekend, especially on football nights.

MAHSA in years to come

2009-02-23T20:07:00.005+08:00

Future plans for my university. I think I would have long graduated already when it is complete. On the brighter side, it sure looks more like a university now compared to some old building block. Hehe.

FUTURE
We at MAHSA College are constantly striving to maintain the highest standards in terms teaching as well as the quality of the facilities and other amenities available for our students. Currently the Jalan University Campus (JUC) is undergoing a facelift whereby RM 10 million will be spent in providing better sporting facilities and other amenities. Soon our students will be able to enjoy such facilities such as a gymnasium, swimming pool, recreational centre along with an ultra modern study area. Furthermore staff amenities will also be upgraded.

MAHSA’s future plans include the construction of a revolutionary new campus that is currently in the design stage in Selayang Heights. This Campus will be home to all the various Medical and Allied Health faculties as well as include dormitories for 10,000 students, sporting centre both indoor and outdoor, a shopping arcade and cinema

WOW!

Source

Broga aka. Lalang Hill on Valentine

2009-02-16T18:41:00.007+08:00

Snippet: 56k killer.

Here's an update on our wonderful hike at Broga Hill, Semenyih. More like Lalang Hill because the whole hill is covered with tall lalangs. I never heard of this place till I saw it on someone elses Facebook album. Since we had nothing to do during Valentines (hint!), a plan was quickly put into action. =)

Owh, and my first set containing HDR'ed pictures as well:

We planned to watch the sunrise on the hill, but got lost looking for the trail up the hill as it was dark and we didn't know which path to take.

Landslide besides the path. The trail was quite obvious once it was bright. It lead us through the thin undergrowth.

A couple planning to celebrate Valentine's on the hill. With cupcakes somemore. How romantic!

20 minutes later, we reached a clearing. We could see people up on the hill slopes already, busy snapping the sun rising.

A shot of the sunrise from the lalangs

The 1st hill from the bottom.

The pack behind me. I was overly excited in taking pictures.

One of the many groups of on the hill. And I spotted at least 10 SLRs on that day itself. @@

Mr. Wong, who is joining us for the first time.

And Mr. Lau, our regular adventure junkie.

View of the 2nd hill. Looks like a scenery from a fantasy movie. My desktop wallpaper at the moment!

Kien Yee & Wye Sern acting out a 'Bollywood' scene!

Views of the 1st hill from the 2nd.

On the way down, I spotted Smashpop & Co.!

And before descending, one of the many jump shots we took.

Headed down Kajang after that for the famous Kajang satay. It was a much less tiring hike, very suitable for all!

Busy

2009-02-15T22:32:00.003+08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates. Been pretty busy the past few days. A few snips:

1) Finally done with the English assignment and presentation. Now that's left is the written paper this coming few days.
2) Lots of unexpected things happening in and around.
3) Gonna have 8am classes pretty soon...darn. No more late nights; else, the yawns and eyebags will pop out.
4) Climbed Broga Hill yesterday during Valentines. An easy hike up a slope. A very nice place with scenic views. Will post the about the trip soon. Meanwhile, here's a picture taken up there:

This is...

2009-02-01T20:27:00.006+08:00

First of the "This is..." series

Reunion dinner

Rilek = urban for relax

Padungan Street = Main Chinatown street of the city

Lodge (school) = A private school in Kuching

Makan angin = Malay for traveling around

Happy Chinese New Year

2009-01-25T20:03:00.002+08:00

Wishing all readers a Happy Chinese New Year!

40°C

2009-01-22T00:49:00.004+08:00

The outside temperature that is (according to that shown on Lee's car).

It poured the past few days, but it was unusually hot today, especially in the afternoon. Still, the heat didn't deter us from heading out to town for lunch and doing more random stuff.

Here are is a collection of photos taken with my phone from the past few days. Still waiting for my SLR to come (hopefully after CNY), so for the moment, its my trusty iPhone for the photo taking since I keep forgetting to bring the FS3 out...

Sunrise last Thursday morning if not mistaken. Owh, not to mention the morning we had our dental competency test. Taken at an early 7.30am while waiting for the lift to climb the 15 floors of my apartment in KL. Reminds me of a scene from 28 Days Later; zombie aftermath.

And the following day, we hit the bowling alley once again, in celebration of our test results. Best of 3 games, which was won by Kien Yee. No prize for guessing whose who on the scoreboard, though we had names of mamak eateries. Straight after that, a futsal match with the juniors, which we lost by quite a margin. Darn!

The same night, we toast and drank to a record 5 beer towers at our regular hangout spot @ Piccadilly, Millenium Square. It started with shitloads of 'bottoms-up' and card playing, and ended up with people lying down on the five-foot way, someone puking through the car window, and tons of laughing gas being passed around.

If Kuching was my first home and KL was the second, the airport would be my third. Flew a record 3 times the past month. However, I took a MAS flight back to Kuching this time instead of AirAsia. Not to mention setting foot at KLIA for the first time in years. Nothing much has changed, just a damn huge airport with damn few people. The only thing good about it is the WiFi is freaking fast! And also, flying by MAS is truly a different experience; you get pampered with great food & hospitality as well.

Back in Kuching, you get the weirdest food and names. Such is a Pepper Cow burger, or more commonly known as the black pepper beef.

Driving around town with nothing to do. The town was badly flooded days before I returned and many roads such as this one overlooking the waterfront was inaccessible. And that huge building in the background? That's the new Dewan Undangan Negeri or DUN in short. One word to describe the building = hideous. Just plain hideous. Apparently, the government wanted to make it the city's landmark, just like the Opera House is at Sydney. Heh?!

Bishopsgate Street. Tiny street alley where we find the best chui mee in Kuching. Shoplots here are the old colonial ones, mostly shops selling furniture and tourist merchanise. A great place if you plan to take nostalgic pictures of streetalleys and five foot ways.

Empty road with shady trees leading to nowhere. Plenty of roads like these in the suburbs; freakishly haunting and dark at night. Yet, this is why they're good spots for night drives. All that's needed is a good scream when something pops out, out of nowhere. This one here is the road leading to a cave which we explored just this afternoon.

Main entrance of the Fairy Cave, a cave some 40km away from the city. Was here this afternoon armed with only 2 torchlights and our trusty flip flops. Headed into the deeper part of the cave following a pitch black path of wooden and slippery planks. One of the routes lead us to an opening somewhere in a forest. Pretty interesting. Yet to explore the remaining 3 routes, saving them for a second exploration sometime soon.

A Dog Tale

2009-01-18T00:10:00.001+08:00

Everybody who has a dog calls him "Rover" or "Boy". I call mine "Sex". He's a great pal, but he has caused me a great deal of embarrassment.

When i went to City Hall to renew his dog license, I told the clerk I would like a license for sex. He said, "I'd like one, too!" Then i said, "But this is a dog." He said he didn't care what she looked like. Then i said,"You don't understand. I've had Sex since i was 9 years old." He winked and said, "You must have been quite a kid."

When i married and went on my honeymoon, I took the dog with me. I told the motel clerk that i wanted a room for my husband and me, and a special room for Sex. He said "You don't need a special room. As long as you pay your bill, we don't care what you do." I said, "Look, you don't seem to understand. Sex keeps me awake at night." The clerk said, "Funny, I have the same problem."

One day i entered Sex in a contest, but before the competition began, the dog ran away. Another contestant asked me why i was just standing there, looking disappointed. I told him I had planned to have Sex in the competition. He told me I should have sold my own tickets. "But you don't understand," I said, "I had hope to have Sex on TV." He said, "Now that cable is all over the place, it's no big deal any more."

When my husband and I separated, we went to court for custody of the dog. I said, "Your Honor, I had Sex before i was married." The judge said, "The courtroom isn't a confessional. Stick to the case, please." Then I told him after I was married, Sex left me. He said, "Me, too."

Last night, Sex ran off again. I spent hours looking all over town for him. A cop came over to me and asked, "What are you doing in this alley at 4a.m?" I told him that i was looking for Sex." My case comes up Friday.

=)

Gunung Datuk Climb

2009-01-14T19:15:00.011+08:00

Last Sunday, I went for a climb at Gunung Datuk at Rembau in Negeri Sembilan. With a height of around 880 metres (2900 feet), it is graded as a beginner mountain to scale in terms of difficulty. I took this as a pre-training climb in preparation for Mt. Santubong when I get back in Kuching.

This is also the first time I'm climbing with a different group of people; a friendly bunch of random people from the Malaysian Outdoor Trekking & Hiking society (MOTHs). The climb was one of the many events hosted by the group members on Facebook. I managed to get Kien Yee along as well, and together we make up the youngest ones among the bunch of climbers that day.

In a 5 car convoy, we drove for about an hour or so before reaching the base camp of the mountain located within a nature park.

Group photo before the climb.

A short walk up to the park headquarters and you will be greeted by a huge tree, and...

A super huge Keris landmark!

After a short briefing, we went on with the climb, headed a pack leader in front and a sweeper behind. We were also informed that an earlier group had started already and were on their way to the peak.

Although graded as a level 1 mountain, it was no normal hike in the park. With inclines of mostly 45 degrees, the trail was pretty stamina demanding.

A section of the trail

Fatigue hit us shortly and we had to take multiple breaks along the way. One of the group shots taken during a 'pitstop'.

We were the last few trailing behind. Hah!

Of what seem like a long 2 hours of hiking, we finally reached a clearing among the canopy.

The rest of the group members were there as well, waiting and taking turns to ascend the ladders which will lead us to the peak. The ladders were rope secured onto huge rocks which rise some 50 feet above us.

We had to climb 3 flights of ladders, the first being the easiest:

The second flight which had 2 ladders:

And finally, the last of 3 ladders:

Might seem easy but it sure was frightening due to the ladders' orientation and the strong wind blowing, which made some people cancel the last climb up to the peak.

Up I went on the wobbly ladders, not wanting to come all the way to miss the chance at the peak especially with the panoramic views at the top. Upon reaching the peak, the view was absolutely stunning:

It was very windy up at the peak, with a slight mist beyond. In fact, one could see as far as the Malacca Straits on a clear day!

I could get used to this

Kien Yee and I at the edge of the cliff

Legend has it that this footprint belongs to Hang Tuah!

As more and more people summit the peak, it began to get slightly crowded up there. At one point there were more than 20 people up the highest rock!

Managed to take a huge group picture though:

A video of us at the peak:

Ascending the ladders took some skill, but all of us managed to get down safely.

After which, came the painful hike down the mountain. Cramps started to set in and my gripless soles under loose gravel didn't help making it easier.

Reached the foot of the mountain around noon, followed by a quick cleanup at a stream.

And after the cleanup and a short break, we headed down to Seremban for lunch at the town market. Before splitting up, some of us took another group photo:

All in all, it was a fun hiking trip especially with a mixed bunch of people!

Dark Roads & Tall Tales

2009-01-03T02:34:00.006+08:00

It has been a wonderful time for me back at home. I could say that the holidays were well spent. Christmas & New Years' celebrations was great. Been out nearly every night, either with my friends or family members. Had a great time enjoying the various food and scenes around town.

Since my cousins were back as well for the holidays, I had a fair share of dinners with my extended family. It has been quite awhile since we all gathered together. I guess this is the first photo I posted here of my extended family, taken at one of our dinners:

Happy faces after eat kau kau. Haha.

Quite a number of ex-classmates and schoolmates were back in town too. Held a couple of gatherings in and around town. It was great reminiscing the old times, especially when some of us hadn't seen each other for a long time. There were many tales of each others lifestyle abroad as well, each unique and different. Some had changed since the last time we met, some still remain the same.

The converse gang is back in action once again.

The converse gang was the name we gave it. Born out of the blue nearly 2 years ago, it's probably my closest circle of friends, namely Edward, Wee Lee, Brendan & Raymond. And together, we plan the wackiest, weirdest and adventurous plans. We share a common trait it seems, which is being nocturnal. Hah...

Night drives was the common thing to do; one would drive the rest of us around town and it's suburbs, usually late at night and the wee mornings. We would start of either by having supper and follow up by the many spontaneous things we do; exploring those dark unlit roads, spooking ourselves with tales of the paranormal, stalking down dens of ladyboys, and plenty more...all for the fun of it.

Our days start after sunset

It seems like I've been around for just a brief while, yet I'm returning to KL in 12 hours time for 2 weeks of class. Timetable is pretty messed up, but I'll take it as a break to finish up my pending assignments. Owh, not to mention about that 3000 word report. =.=

Closing 2008

2008-12-31T18:29:00.004+08:00

The year of has finally came to an end. O-eight was somewhat a 'fabulous' year if I were to sum it up in a word. Throughout the year, it has been eventful most certainly. With friends of different walks of life, I had the opportunity of exploring the many parts of this land, experiencing and trying out new things as I move along. It has been great and many thanks to those whom lived the moments together as well. Ushering in 2009 in 2 hours, it's a brand new chapter again. Ahh...resolution? Haven't really thought about it, perhaps a resolution to all previously unsolved resolutions?

Anyway, to my readers and all, I wish you the very best in the coming year. Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T16:32:00.004+08:00

Seasons greetings and a jolly Christmas to all out there!
Enjoy this Christmas song! =p

Estrella - Stay

2008-12-19T21:02:00.005+08:00

Rock The World 8 tomorrow!!!!!

Screamyx

2008-12-16T21:32:00.003+08:00

Upgraded to a 4mb line yesterday. The results:

Yet still !@#$%^& Disappointing. 4mb kononnya. Downloading at miserable ~5kbps...

I think run faster than my internet.

The Birth and Death of the Day

2008-12-15T19:45:00.002+08:00

The days ended with:

Bowling mania with the gang. Bowler names however are strictly classified. The urge to bowl has returned but the touch was lost.

Alcohol party at Kepong Baru. Antique house, brand new hangout spot. Crazy game and wild moments guaranteed.

Chillin' + yamcha at Lookout Point before the final results were released the next day. Stress not seen till 4pm the following day.

Post-result, BBQ steamboat. An all-chinese gathering of hungry felines and canines.

Revisiting Bukit Tabur after a month and many unsuccesful plans. Empty trail so we had all the time we needed. 400 pictures + 4 hours hiking.

Seafood at Kuala Selangor, outskirts of KL. Great seafood, so much like Kampung Buntal back in Kuching. After that, rowed in a sampan down a river watching fireflies. The mosquitos just had to ruin it though!

Tried out at impression taking and 'rubber dam' fixing, the earlier being the harder due to the no-nonsense lecturer and the impression powder which sets impossibly fast. Rubber dams = time consuming precautionary step. No wonder we rarely see dentists using it.

Rantai Art Exhibition at the Red Bungalow, KLCC. Impressive artwork by locat indie artists, live performances by indie bands and equally interesting poem recitals. A no show for Chinese folks however. Hmmph....

Christmas is here and together with the merry decorations and shopping craze. Back in Kuching for Christmas however....10 days and counting.

Pulau Ketam

2008-12-10T17:14:00.009+08:00

Snippet: I'm sunburnt all over after Pulau Ketam and Bukit Tabur!

Kien Yee, Harvin and I went for a half day trip to Pulau Ketam (Translated: Crab Island) yesterday. Well, it was more like a whole day trip for me though. My first time journeying there as well, so I was pretty hyped up although I knew it was just a fishing village over there. Hehe.

Kien Yee & I hopped on the KTM for an hour 30 minutes ride to Pelabuhan Klang (Port Klang). Long journey with nothing much too see...except for coconut trees and backyards of houses.

Arriving slightly earlier, we lingered around the port area while waiting for Harvin to arrive.

Apparently its not just one port at Port Klang...plenty more others that make this whole area up.

Sampans and speedboats docking near the pier

Harvin arrived just in time for the next shuttle ferry heading to Pulau Ketam. The one way journey costs RM7 per person. It was just like riding a water bus, the rumbling sound of the engine and the slightly bumpy ride.

Waiting for the red boat.

Inside the boat. Quite cramped, but at least it's airconditioned

Cruising by docking ships and swamps, it took 20 minutes before we reached the island. The island is mainly a fishing village, with most of the houses built on stilts. People have settled here since the 70s, and the island hasn't pretty much changed since then, with the exception of electricity and satellite dishes. It looks pretty much like this from the shore:

The jetty on the island. The notice reads: Ban on motorized vehicles on the island.

We rented bicycles to ease our exploration of the island. In fact, bicycles are the main mode of transportation on the island. Nearly every house has one, and I bet everyone knows how to ride one. Wasting no time, we started our cycle around the island. Plenty of interesting and colorful buildings around:

The island's own voluntary fire station!

Just after that, the police station.

There are plenty of temples scattered all over the village.

Group photo of us.

There were plenty of bridges as well. 11 if not mistaken, we rode over a few but not all.

This is what it looks like generally. Wood and water, boats and moats.

Cycling around the island was fun and nostalgic at the same time. The village looks like it was from an online game or a movie set. Life was at its slowest pace around here. The villagers were friendly yet curious at the same time when we sort of trespass their 'roads'. Hahah!

I bet the kid cycles better than any of us. I think they immediately learn riding a bike after learning how to walk!

No wide roads here, just sufficient for bicycles. They all link to one another, creating a labyrinth of corners and turnings. Very confusing.

After covering nearly half of the island, we turned back towards the main street of the village; Jalan Satu, for lunch. It seems to be the main gathering area of the villagers around here as nearly everyone passes by this road.

Jalan Satu

Here's where we had our lunch. Had trouble choosing a spot to eat, so we settled for the one which is most packed.

Lala chien! Tasty but the lala's were damn tiny

Super huge and fat bamboo clams! I never ate any this huge before! Damn nice!

Bawal putih

Pulau Ketam crabs! We didn't get any down our stomachs though; our bill would certainly shoot up.

After a satisfying and cheap lunch, we went exploring other parts of the island. We would ride to the ends of roads just to see what is at the end.

Swamps.

I think this must be the village's dumpsite.

View from one of the many river banks.

There were many odd wooden buildings as well...building you won't see elsewhere but here on the island:

Wooden Maybank building.

School and basketball court all on stilts.

Abandoned pub.

TM point

Rumah Pesara (Old folks home)

Grocery store

We left the island around 5pm, trying to avoid the last minute rush if taking the last boat which was at 6. It was another of those simple but memorable trips. Worth a second visit!

Sparkling...juice

2008-12-06T15:23:00.005+08:00

Time for some updates after 'abandoning' my blog for quite sometime. No pictures this time around, uploading problems due to the slow internet. Frustrating.

I was utterly free the past few days. It came to a point that we all attend classes just to sit down for an hour's lecture, get some practical things done and after that, its just lazing around. Pretty thankful I had my iPhone to waste minutes on it playing games or listening to songs. Back at home, boredom hits hard, especially when there is nothing much to do except getting online, playing games, and sleeping.

It would have sucked if classes were just lectures all day long. It could have even been worst if Dr. Zaimah had taken over Dr. Ikmal. I'm sure most of us would agree on the term 'bitchcry' for her. Those who stepped on her 'tail' might have known better. Meh! And I found out impression taking was depressingly time consuming. Took me 6 tries just to get a so-so impression. Not to mention those damn air bubbles. So damn depressing that my friends had comments like "Super duper depressed" & "...hates impression taking" on Facebook. By the way, needing those extracted teeth as well, my stock is fast depleting.

Since we all were pretty unoccupied, we found a common liking of the movies. It has been a movie mania for me the past few weeks. On the lowdown;
1) Igor sucked and all I get from that movie was 'yes masterrr......' all the while,
2) Quarantine was thrilling if you can withstand the constant motion camera shaking (just make sure your buddy don't puke on you),
3) Bolt was so-so although half of the gang slept during the show,
4) Transporter 3 was fucking gay due to the cheezy lines and SPOILER: Jason Statham's striptease,
5) Twilight was the pick of the month if you were to choose. (I found myself watching it twice and reading the novel =.=)

And with a gang of wacky people like Harvin, the Joyces' (I swear it sounds like a band name) & Kien Yee, fun wasn't just a 3 letter word. You get all sorts of weirdness. From bowling with spoof names to getting totally obsessed with Robert Pattinson & 'sparkling' awesomness?!?! I'll try get the pictures from those gila-gila moments posted up as soon as possible. Kthxbai!