Weekend Getaway

It is interesting to note that there aren't any public holidays in March. So we decided to utilize our complimentary voucher for a night's stay at the Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Beach Resort and give ourselves some time off.

This was the very same venue where we held our wedding dinner a year ago and the service provided by the team at the hotel impressed us very much (In fact, they were so much in demand that when we attended a wedding dinner at an auspicious date here last year, we got lost trying to look for the correct venue. A manager found us wandering aimlessly and took us to the correct venue. We were told they were hosting six wedding dinners that night!) This time round, they were able to match that top notch service again.

A handwritten welcome card found in the fruit basket

L'Occitane Toiletries!

Our stay was a brief one but we've managed to squeeze as much into it as humanly possible.We hit the gym, played some tennis (or rather spent most of the time picking up balls), did some swimming, roasted in the steam bath and the sauna, simmered in the jacuzzi and had a great 5 star buffet breakfast. The only thing that we failed at was getting access to the Wii consoles at the Kid's Club - our impersonations of 10 year olds failed spectacularly.

The view from our patio

What a weekend it has been! If you have any more complimentary vouchers Mr Andrew Steele, please don't hesitate to send it my way. You know how to contact me, heheh.

Manliness +5

Its almost been one year to the day where I moved in to my house and I must say that we've been blessed not to have any major faults with our home. A streak like that is unlikely to go on forever anyway and it became a question of how soon before I had to break out the 'oh-still-very-virgin-toolbox.' I didn't have to wait long.

The master bedroom light refused to switch on yesterday morning as I prepared for work. I have changed light bulbs before, so there was probably nothing much to this one. At least that's what I thought.

As we walked in to the lighting shop where we bought most of our stuff from, my wife suggested testing whether it was really the fluorescent tube that was at fault to which the shopkeeper obliged. Much to my chagrin, it lit perfectly. So the shopkeeper deduced that the transformer (at least that's what I think he said) was at fault and suggested I replace it.

Mr Optimus Prime

When I saw what a transformer was, I was a bit worried. Those two dangly bits you see on the left side means that I have to connect them to the live and the neutral wires, something that I've never done before. I asked for as much advice I could before leaving, but as I reached home, I realised that I forgot to ask if I needed to ensure the current for the entire room needed to be turned off.

Hmm, maybe I should wear rubber gloves? Since that will be good insulation...but I don't have any. Rubber slippers? Zilch. I decided (correctly) to just go ahead and rewire it since the light switch was turned off anyway and that meant no current was flowing through.

The whole thing was a piece of cake really. Heheh. Having stepped out of my comfort zone and succeeding in my mission was a milestone for me.

TED

Total Experience Points Gained : +10

Repair Skills: +5

Manliness Rating : +5

Until it failed to work again this morning...

#$%@

TED

Total Experience Points: -5

Repair Skills: -2

Manliness Rating: -7

Well its back to Mr Handyman after I get off work tonight. I hope I wouldn't have to summon a Mr Fred Fixit from the Night Shift.

A Brush with the Law

As I was driving home after a long day at work yesterday, I called up my wife to let her know I was coming back and bade her good night as she wanted to retire to bed earlier. Now I've made the same kind of call countless times throughout the years and they last no longer than a couple of seconds. This few seconds last night were different though, because a patrol car just happened to overtake me and caught me with my hands up (holding the phone that is). What are the odds of that?

Unfortunately I must be honest and say that I've never had a pleasant experience with our men in blue before. I've made 3 police reports in the past (two robberies and one pickpocketing) and talking to them was like being in the presence of a god. At least thats what they think they are and to remind you of that they will be unnecessarily intimidating at intervals when they feel their god-o-meter rating is slipping.

So you can imagine all this negative emotions racing through my mind as the two officers walked towards my car. Mr Sergeant opened my driver's car door gave me a big smile and said 'Good evening!' Mr L/Cpl walked around my vehicle...I guess trying to be wary in case I tried to be funny. I stepped out of the car, handed my licence and ID over when Mr Sergeant asked for it politely.

Since the two officers were really in a jovial and polite mood, I reciprocated and smiled all the way. I admitted that I was at fault and asked them for forgiveness. THEN, I WASN'T PREPARED FOR WHAT HAPPENED NEXT...

Mr Sergeant turned into Uncle Sergeant mode!!!

1) Uncle Sergeant told me he was concerned with many people who drive while talking on handphones and the accident rates speak for themselves. He advised me to get a hands free kit or if really necessary just pull over, put on the signal and take the call. He asked me how many kids I had, and to think of my loved ones should anything happen to me.

2) Uncle Sergeant shouted at Mr L/Cpl to write up a lenient sentence for me since I was a gentleman, admitted my wrong and he told me he had the right to do so. So my ticket actually states that I failed to produce my licence (which was a maximum of RM50 fine). Had I been 'kurang ajar' he said he would have whacked me with the 'using the handphone while driving' offence which would have been up to RM300. I guess asking to be let off would have been pushing it a bit.

3) Uncle Sergeant proceeded to give me some tips on how I can get a discount for the RM50 when I go to the balai -.-" Seriously.

4) Uncle Sergeant, Mr L/Cpl and I shook hands, wished each other farewell and a safe drive to our destination.

To their credit, at no point in the entire episode did they try to solicit any sort of bribe from me. Their advice was genuinely from their hearts and I could sense that they have a passion and pride for their jobs. A very rare breed of cops indeed! Yes there may be some rotten apples in the police force, but its very refreshing to have encountered these two officers. I will definitely remember these two men for the rest of my life and out of respect for Uncle Sergeant, I will definitely take his advice and not talk on the phone while driving again without a hands free.

Harvest

A couple of months back, it was struggling to survive. And now...

Tadaa! Fresh from the harvest! I was expecting the tomatoes to sport a darker and deeper red than this, but it tastes just fine. As for the chili, it produces so much that we have to give a lot of it away. Just let me know if you want any, the next batch is coming soon. A word of warning though, it is VERY SPICY.

The Tiger Roars Back!...meekly

If you happened to watch ESPN last night, you would have seen a live telecast of Tiger emerging from his solitude.

A lot of things have already been said about Tiger but can he recover from this seemingly deep pile of 'tahi' that he is in? I believe he can, and here's why I think so.

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1) Bill and Hillary Clinton

Bill Clinton is an exceptional man. He oozes so much charm and confidence that he makes Obama looks like an immensely shy and introverted teenager who still wets his bed. Unfortunately his scandal with Monica Lewinsky became his undoing as it brought a lot of controversy and eventually kickstarted impeachment proceedings.

Hillary about to administer a karate chop when Bill was eyeing some 'candy'

Aftermath - Bill and Hillary are still married. You can argue that there is of course no other way as a divorce will jeopardize Hillary's political career. Besides, these two have a synergistic combination that will be worthless if they went their own ways. Bill remained hugely popular after he left office, even more so after the voters suffered 8 years under the idiot that succeeded him.

2) John Terry and Toni Poole

John Terry was publicly disgraced after failing to secure a super injunction that prevented the press from publishing stories of his affair with underwear model Veronica Perroncel. So when the whole thing blew open and details were explosively released, JT lost his England captaincy and Toni took the kids to Dubai.
Aftermath - What part of Toni's face says 'I'm still damn pissed with you for cheating behind my back?' John may have lost the England captaincy but at Chelsea, he's still the top dog. However, its still early to say what long term implications this may have on his career but if he plays his cards well, it will fall to his favour.

3) David Letterman and Regina Lasko

In October last year, David announced on his show that he was being blackmailed regarding his alleged affairs with the subordinates on his show. He also confirmed that the allegations were true.
Aftermath - David publicly apologized to his wife and stated that he has his work cut out for him. His ratings did not seem to be negatively affected by the scandal but on the contrary boosted it slightly.

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I'm not saying its alright to cheat on your spouse, let's be clear on that. However, I think Tiger can draw some lessons from some of these men. All these men may have erred, but they are good in what they do. Despite all the mess in their personal lives, when they are doing their jobs they are among the best in the world.

Tiger needs to be seen saying the right words and doing the right things from now. And once he comes back to the golf course and does what he does best (on the golf course I mean) all will be forgiven. Everybody loves a winner despite all the imperfections. This is the year of the Tiger after all.

CNY 2010

When people ask me where I am from, I will often hesitate before I reply. Should I say I'm from Rawang, my place of birth? I've never spent much time there though...Or Brunei, where I spent most of my early life? Then people will answer, 'Oh so you're Bruneian then?' which I am not. Or Penang, where a huge number of my relatives are? ...but I'm not familiar with Penang. More often than not, I will say I am from Petaling Jaya and although that's not technically true, it does save me a lot of unnecessary hassle.

Despite all the geographical confusion, there is one place that is always a constant - and that is I've spent all my Chinese New Years (those in my living memory) in Penang. And this year is no exception.

Double Prosperity 'Special'..Heheh. Top one's chicken, bottom beef

Air con rationing at Tune Hotel...you want more? Pay lor

Up Penang Hill

Bloody hot weather this year! No clouds in sight

The bronze Kuan Yin at Kek Lok Si temple, which unfortunately was closed on that day

Elaborate wall carvings at Kek Lok Si

Pumpkins! Lots of pruning work required to make it look like this

A flower at the Kek Lok Si

Misai Kucing, at a different temple though

The famous Air Itam laksa stall

It looks messy but it tastes good

Heheh... A cousin who supports Man U didn't finish his nasi lemak when he found out it was called Nasi Lemak Liverpool

Chestnuts from the Chowrasta Market

Nothing welcomes you into 'Uncle-hood' better than saying 'Here's your ang pow' as opposed to 'Where's my ang pow?'

Balik!

Balik kampung today! Happy Chinese New Year to all of you and to all those who are driving back, travel safe!~