An Altercation

Something interesting happened this morning. I was with a customer and suddenly there were these voices (a young man and an uncle) shouting at each other. I didn't see the incident before that but apparently a child was playing around while his parents were paying at the cashier and didn't see the uncle pushing a trolley in the adjacent lane and got his head knocked. A very minor incident, not even a bruise... but not for the father. His fists were raised and ready to strike the much older man down.

The younger man ironically shouted that the uncle had no manners and didn't even apologize, and the uncle said back to him in this frame 'as if you should be talking about manners'

To the uncle's credit, he tried to calm the younger man down saying that he didn't see the child running or turning, and the parents should have been more mindful of their child. The younger man got so pissed that it could have been his fault and started shouting at the uncle, that he should be more careful when there are children around.

The 'triumphant' father who has defended his family's honor...or has he?

The whole thing is silly really, it's really no one's fault and accidents happen all the time. So has the young man really won? It would appear so. But then again, what the father is saying indirectly to his child is

1) It doesn't matter if it's your fault, I will bring you their severed testicles on a plate for lunch.
2) It's ok to be rude.
3) It's ok to be disrespectful to strangers, especially the weak and elderly.

Great parenting dad! Watch out for the little one during his rebellious teenage years... you won't be spared.

Nyan

I would have preferred a propaganda sticker with a dog instead, but come on, Chairman Meow? Genius!

So Why Can't I Resist From Buying That...

... gadget? shoes? dress? or camera? Usually the last one for me. I recently read about this concept of 'ego depletion' and it may explain a bit. What it means is that willpower (or any conscious effort that require self control) is a limited resource, like the amount of petrol in a car. So the more we use our willpower, the more liable we are to giving in to our splurges at a later stage. There are 2 experiments that demonstrate that it exists (and if you're not interested just skip the colored text below).

Experiment 1

- A bowl of radish and a stack of chocolate chip cookies were placed on the table

- Subjects were asked to skip one meal to induce hunger and then split to 3 groups - control (who didn't eat either the radish or cookies), radish and chocolate.

- The radish group were placed in the room with both foods and asked to eat only the radish while avoiding the chocolate, and vice-versa for the chocolate group.

- All participants asked to solve an unsolvable geometric puzzle (which was unknown to them).

Results: The radish eating group gave up earlier than both control and chocolate group, which both had similar times.The radish eating group also felt more 'tired' after the puzzle.

Interpretation: The radish eating group had to use more willpower to avoid the chocolate and have used up some sort of psychic energy.

Experiment 2

-The problem with the first experiment was that the task was unsolvable and it can be argued that the radish eating group was 'smarter' in realizing this and therefore gave up earlier. 

- The participants were asked to watch videos, some being humorous and some sad. 

- They were split into 2 groups, one was asked to suppress all emotion when watching and the other had no restrictions. 

- The subjects were given anagram letter sets.

Results: The emotion suppressed group had far fewer anagrams than the other group.

Interpretation: This proved further evidence that some resource was depleted after an act of self control.

Hang on a minute? Isn't life a series of choices?

Sleeping in vs hitting the gym

Reading up on recent developments vs Facebook-ing

Healthy lunch vs not so healthy

Getting the camera vs saving for that vacation

So back to the question... why can't we resist? Simple. Its because we've been working too hard and making too much of the right choices lately. *GRINS* Go have that fried chicken. It's better for you on the long run.

Jerks

So there's this really interesting article about jerks...

That unintelligent people on average die faster is common sense and proof of natural selection. So the world is constantly getting 'smarter' and more competitive with time. So how about jerks? Is the world a nicer place to be in now than a decade ago? Stupid people die young but how about jerks?

You know we all mostly say we hate jerks and mean people, but nothing can be further from the truth. We worship them.

Yaaa...as if you watch American Idol because of Randy Jackson

A jerk made American Idol the way it is. The jerk has left and so have many of the audience.

Some have said that American Idol based its panel of judges on a tried and tested formula of the personality of presenters at Top Gear, a jerk, a pretty face (prettiest among the lot) and a boring person. And it works very well. Top Gear would not be the same if there were three James May.

This fella needs no introduction. His words may have been responsible in a restaurant owner's decision to commit suicide.

So back to the question, is the world a nicer place to be? Not really. One thing's for sure, jerks may die young but they are getting richer.

Hare Cut

With Chinese New Year just a week away, I went for a haircut yesterday. The normal salon that I frequent has recently started becoming popular, with me having to wait for an hour the last time I was there. Now changing hairstylists is never easy and sometimes brings regrets, but the long waiting time is a bit too much. So I tried a new salon.

 The first thing they gave me when I sat down was a catalogue of hairstyles. Right from the start I spotted a problem. It can't be considered a haircut if I walk out of there with longer hair then I came with right?

I wish I had hair like that

There was only one picture in that catalogue that was realistically possible and I showed it to the hairstylist. She glanced at it, said 'Oh, so you want short ah' and started work with a shaver. I noticed she didn't even look at the instructions that were on the page, much less follow it.

After 10 minutes I ended up looking nothing at all like what the picture suggested but I knew better than to protest. Genetically with the cards that we've been dealt with, sometimes its not possible to achieve that ideal model look. Well not for 20 bucks and 10minutes anyway. Nevertheless I'm satisfied enough and will probably consider returning in the future.

A Thousand Words

A local hypermarket put up on its notice board the following picture. Its a picture of a charity home that they support.

Baby A: So what are you in here for?
Baby B: I smacked my brother in the face with a Ben 10 watch.

Now I'm sure the photographer had nothing but the best of intentions when he snapped that pic but it turned out to have a different feel to what he or she was trying to achieve. What do you think?

Turning 28

I celebrated my 28th birthday last week in a very quiet manner. Not that I mind. For the better part of this decade, I feared birthdays. Birthdays usually involved lots of lies and deception...along with plenty of flour, eggs and water. There were always 2 birthday cakes - one for the guests and one for your face. More time was spent in the planning of the 'sabo' and the cleaning up than the actual celebration itself. And that's why I know I'll be safe at home where my cleanliness obsessed wife will never pull off such a thing. My wife did give me something else though.

I really appreciated the gesture and thought it was very sweet of her. It did leave me thinking... who did I have to beat to be the Best Hubby of the Year? Who were the other contestants?

"The people in this house" she said. "That means you, you and you!"

"So who won?"

"You lor!"

Heh. Ask a stupid question get a stupid answer huh. Its a good thing she didn't do this in an elimination style voting, kinda like the World Cup venue picks. I'd be pretty suspicious if I (either you or you) had been eliminated in the first round like England. Also retaining the title will be pretty much a cinch. I've (you, you or you) got this title in the bag for many many years to come.

Old Is Good

Barely a month after getting my car back from the workshop, another problem appeared. The car boot was always wet during a rainy day and the wooden board that was there had turned into sludge-like material. So it wasn't any good just replacing the board, it had to be certified water tight so this does not happen again. 

There weren't many workshops around that are willing to test for leaks and repair them but I did find one eventually. That was the first time I've been there so I looked around at how their other customers repairs were going along. Interestingly I was the only one at the shop for repairs, all the others were there to upgrade. A burly chinese man was installing new lights and door handles to his Ninja King (Land Cruiser), a JPJ officer was lowering his car and changing the rims and another fella was haggling over a new sport suspension kit but decided in the end to just change the bodykit on his Dmax. 

This got me thinking too... my car is currently about 13 years old and there will definitely be an increased cost of maintenance due to its age, so why not just get a new car? As I was entertaining this thought, I noticed something.

I had the whole car repainted while it was at the workshop and so fast there's a major scratch! Most of the time my car's exposed to a lot of things when I'm at work. Its an open air and a high traffic car park at a hypermarket and who knows someone might have knocked a shopping trolley into it accidentally or parked too close and swung his door open carelessly.

These things are unavoidable in such an environment. I don't know who did it, but I do know that I'm not going to get a new car now. The heartbreak will be a lot more intense! I'll probably drive this one till its wheels fall off or situations or am in a situation that makes it necessary for me to get a bigger/new car.

A Life Lost

"Your business is about to f**king swim down the Hudson," Ramsey said to Cerniglia, while offering advice on how to turn his business around.


One must really wonder how much influence the words Gordon Ramsay bluntly said to restaurant owner Joseph Cerniglia in 2007 had on the latter's decision to take his life in that particular manner. If you've watched his shows then you will realize most of the time his lips will be moving but there will be no audio. That's because its mostly profanities.

When he was interviewed by Jeremy Clarkson on an episode of Top Gear, Jeremy brought up the topic of Gordon having received an OBE and jokingly asked if it was for services to swearing. Gordon doesn't just have colorful language but gets angry a lot and is very rude. Well no doubt this helps the show's ratings. The main reason why many people watch American Idol is because of Simon Cowell though no contestant has taken their lives yet. And thats 2 for Gordon! Well I think its because Simon looks like a buffoon anyway and no one takes him seriously.

In our line of work we meet all sorts of characters daily and this is a very timely reminder to never take anything personally no matter how much pressure we are under. The results can really be fatal.

Lessons from the Walk

I was involved in a car accident a few weeks back and it forced me to find an alternative method of transport. The workshop promised that they will have everything up and running in 3 weeks time. They took 4 weeks. But it doesn't matter. I could not have been any happier than I was yesterday when I drove to work in my own car again. It didn't bother me that the radio station I listen to chose to do a Justin Bieber marathon and my ears were bleeding by the time I arrived. No sir, not bothered at all.

There are a few experiences that I'll probably never forget from my 4 weeks of walking to work.

- There are things you think about when you walk that you probably wouldn't even bother when you are driving. You notice the terrain more ... well maybe because YOU HAVE TO! You learn which stretch of road has the most dog shit. You notice where the trees are and the shade they provide. There's one awful stretch of road that has no shade at all and takes me a brisk 9 minutes to cover.

- The weather. I've not been affected by meteorology since my time in Glasgow but how the weather fares here will determine how fast I get to work. On hot days I can reach in 23 minutes tops but on nice cloudy days, probably 30minutes.

- Roadkill. Birds. Dogs. Cats. Rats. Urggh.

- There are some really kind people out there. I've been offered a ride to work twice.

- Conversing on my terms. The first time I was offered a ride, it was a non-stop high-speed MLM sales pitch till my destination. That made me resolve to control the conversation should I come across the same situation again. Second time round was another fella, a neighbor of mine. Nevertheless I avoided asking obvious questions like, 'so what do you do for a living?' or 'what interests you?' and stuck with safe topics like weather and politics.

- And finally, if I had to do those four weeks all over again, I'd rather buy a bicycle.

Bus Number 11

What a week it has been! So much has happened that the end result was me being relegated to doing something that I've not done since my university days.

I was involved in a car crash about a week ago. It was raining heavily and as I approached a traffic light that was turning yellow, I instinctively stepped on the gas not realizing that the car in front of me was already stationary.

This is the first time I've been involved in a major accident and I hope it will be the last as well. It will take up to 3 weeks (I hope they keep to their word) to get the car up and running again, but till then, my mobility has been seriously reduced. Its a good thing that I stay relatively near to my workplace - it takes around 20-25 minutes walk. Public transport is less of a convenience than walking and definitely not an option.

Good Ol' Bus Number 11

What gets me most is the timing of the accident. My mom is coming to visit me later this weekend and without a way to get around ... well I guess we can do some work on the garden!

Prison (Holiday) Break!

Normally when someone mentions to you 'prison' or 'jail' what comes to your mind? A dark, dirty and undesirable place that no one in their right mind will ever want to go is what came to mine (we have stories from the oh so feh-mes Kamunting). Rightly so! These places serve as a deterrent.

Apparently some folks in Norway thought otherwise. So they built Halden - the World's most humane high-security prison.

Unbelievably, they've spent around $1 million on paintings, photography and light installations! Rooms are fitted with en-suite bathrooms with ceramic tiles, mini-fridges and flat screen tvs. And according to them, 'Officials say sleeker televisions afford inmates less space to hide drugs and other contraband.' Rrrrright...

This looks better than some of the hotels I've stayed in

The windows have no bars - though anyone trying to escape is probably stupid

This is the scariest picture so far - a dental chair! *gasps* The sound of drills...

And if you do get bored of your stay, you can choose to do some workout, rock-climbing or take up a course (where they'll refer to you as a student and never an inmate). They go to great lengths to do this because they reason that criminals will have to rejoin society sooner or later and they try to make this phase of transition as similar as they can to the real world experience. While this is a very noble idea with lots of merits, it will never work in Malaysia. There will be a sudden surge in crimes as people jostle for places in these so called prisons (yours truly included).

So Not Haute!

I have this black singlet that I have been wearing as a pajamas for about a year or so.

Recently within the space of 2 weeks, I've spotted 5 different individuals that wear the exact same garment (with the Red Edwin words at the back) - 2 at the gym and 3 at my work place. I have such a generic taste in clothing? Or maybe Edwin was having a huge sale. Yea that must be it.

There is a logical explanation to all this. Lets say you're in a department store. Out of the whole floor selling men's clothing, the store will designate a small area to selling underwear (This Edwin garment was bought in the underwear section of a department store by the way...I bet those 5 other guys bought them at more or less the same place too). So thats like what? 10% of all the clothing on that floor? This is not including the independent/chain retail clothing outlets that are also in the mall. So on the whole, lets say Mid Valley, I can safely say that 5-10% of all the clothing sold there are undergarments.

So lets say all the PJ residents shop exclusively at Mid Valley and so the 2 million or so residents get their fresh supply of underwear from more or less the same place. Therefore - if you were to randomly approach people and start pulling down their pants...

TOFWPATA being 'The Other Fella With Pants Around The Ankles'...

Do you see what I'm saying here? Normally I should not be bothered by this, but 5 different people in 2 weeks is a bit too much. I can't sleep well at night knowing that I'm wearing the same thing as the balding uncle with a huge potbelly. Maybe its time to shop at a more exclusive place. Victoria's Secret maybe...and I don't care that they don't cater to men.

Sore Loser

I've had my PSP for a couple of years now and it has entertained me through the many ups and downs in my life. A game in which I have logged a considerable amount of time on is Winning Eleven (or Pro Evolution Soccer).

Initially I started with the easiest level available in the Master League setting and then when I started winning by at least 5 goals in each match, raise the difficulty by one level. Winning on a higher level may be difficult at first, but with time and patience, you can beat the machine (As opposed to playing against another human where more is required. You must always be wary of dirty tactics - like your opponent messing with your controller when you are about to score...not that I do that kind of thing).

On the subject of playing with another human gamer, there are also emotions to consider. Like if you constantly leave your gaming partner eating the dust in your latest duel. There are people who thrive on this kind of challenge, they resolve to get back at you and make you eat humble pie. And then there are also people who are sore losers... eventually you'll have one less gaming partner because they will be very reluctant to play with you.

Recently my PSP started acting like a human.

I've been playing at the 5th highest level of difficulty (out of 6) for some time and have been winning a bit too comfortably. After this current Master League season I'll probably start playing one level higher. Then Mr Pee-Ass-Pee started pulling this stunt.

Each time the ball is in my possession, it will somehow revert to the Quit Menu. Even worse - the game doesn't pause itself! What a low blow. Main belakang ni...

The Quit Menu can only be accessed by pressing the HOME button on the bottom left corner of the screen and as you can see in the video my finger was no where near it. I had to press the HOME button again to get out of the menu.

To say its irritating is an understatement. There are few things in this world that are more annoying than Justin Bieber and his songs but I'd rather put a mop on my head and sing 'Baby baby baby ooooh~!' than be unjustly cut off when Gerrard is about to score from 30 yards out. But I guess I'd better let it win once in a while. After all you know what happen when you try to call someone who is very bad at losing over for a game. They ignore your call and messages or make up excuses. One day Mr PSP may not turn up for the game at all.

Here Horsey

Ever thought of owning a horse? Check out the advert below.

I must say I've never thought a horse will be as cheap as RM 1300 each. Some more you buy 4 you get Rm1000 each only! That's empat ekor! Wow! One Honda EX5 Dream costs more than that! Some more if you notice the ad to the right, satu ekor anjing is way more expensive. Pound for pound, the furrier one costs a fortune.

If I had a bigger garage...hmm, I may just ride to work everyday.

Ketua Perangkap Tikus

Britain has a new Prime Minister. While David Cameron may have been very busy in appointing ministers and officials to key government positions, there is one post that greatly interests me. That is the position of Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office (this title - as with a lot of other titles or names - holds a lot more glamour than its malay translation).

Appointed officials are considered 'civil servants' and reside at the iconic 10 Downing Street. Operating from such a position, you will get the opportunity to be involved in the heartbeat of the current administration, rub shoulders (among many other body parts you can choose from) with top dignitaries from around the world and be the social and media darling. Downside? You only get paid £100 per year. Oh and you must meow.

As the name suggests, your job is to exterminate the little furry rodents that scamper around the hundred or so rooms at 10 Downing. The last Chief Mouser was Sybil.

Looks like her dad must have been a cow at some stage

Sybil started her term on the 11th September 2007, but failed to settle in and left after six months. It was rumored that Gordon Brown disliked Sybil, though I suspected it was the other way round. She died in July 2009.

Sybil patrolling the grounds

Now, her predecessor was something of a legend. Humphrey held the position so long that he served under 3 Prime Ministers.

Some highlights of Humphrey's career:

-Humphrey was said to be of considerably better value than the Cabinet's professional pest controller who charged £4,000 a year but was reported to have never caught a mouse.

- In November 1993, Humphrey was found to be suffering from a kidney ailment and a strict diet was instituted. A ban on feeding him treats was put in place.

- In June 1994, Humphrey was accused of killing 4 robin chicks who was nesting in a box outside the office of the Prime Minister. Then Prime Minister John Major exonerated him the next day.

- In June the following year, Humphrey went missing. He was found patrolling the nearby Royal Army Medical College where he was taken in on the assumption that he was a stray. Upon his return to 10 Downing, Humphrey issued a statement through the civil service saying, "I have had a wonderful holiday at the Royal Army Medical College, but it is nice to be back and I am looking forward to the new parliamentary session."

- Humphrey was manipulated out of office months after the Blairs moved in to 10 Downing Street. He was apparently sedated and forced into retirement.

- He died March 2006.

I could definitely make use with a Chief Mouser in my office too... but too bad, I'm a dog person.

Movie Karma

Going to the cinema to catch a movie has turned out to be something of a luxury for me. It hasn't always been like this - but with many other social and work commitments it has been relegated down the priority list. Its usually confined to public holidays and even then, not always.

This schedule effectively means that I will miss lots of blockbusters ... the 2012 movie showing being one of them. I thought it would't be that bad since I had borrowed a DVD version, but it turned out to be a dud.

I'm Dud

Fortunately the Gods of All Things Cinematic (Oh yeah, its a real deity alright! Talking loudly during a movie will ensure you get crappy front row seats for the next few movies you attend...that sort of thing) has decided to step in and show some mercy. When my wife found out that 2012 will be showing in a test run to the opening of the new GSC at Suria Sabah, we jumped at the chance.

It may have been a long time in coming, but well appreciated nevertheless. You know what the best part is?

It's free! Heheh.

Yoga's Killing Me

Or to be more specific, my wardrobe.

Right in between the family jewels section

This is the second pair of pants I've had to retire recently - and I suspect due to the body contorting acts I endured during yoga. I probably still can wear it in public, provided I walk tightly and real cautiously. Notwithstanding the title of this post, I still think yoga is very beneficial. Time to shop around for new gym clothes soon then.

Another good news, this is the last of the Vincent clothes! Ever since the dobi somehow chose to address me as Vincent (despite my laundry receipt having the name TED), I've been living in Vincent's pants, literally that is. Now Ted can finally really be Ted. Bye Vincent!

iPhone Comes To Digi

Digi has caused lots of speculation and anticipation since it first announced that it will be selling the iPhone quite a while back.

Digi announced its packages two days ago and those who were hoping for an iPhone price war have been greatly disappointed. If you had been following the local iPhone forums, you would have known that Apple strictly controls the pricing of the phone itself and the only thing left for the telcos to fight over will be over their subscription plans. In fact the only way to reduce the price of the iPhone - and we have to do this together - is to convince Encik Leher-Penyu that we don't want what he's selling.

Encik Leher-Penyu explaining how all our wallets are belong to him

Think about it. That's the reason why there are clearance sales. It's not that nobody wants the products but rather not many people are willing to fork out the cash for the retail price, but if it were sold for less...they may just be convinced to get it. So even though we cry and have vivid wet dreams at night over the iPhone, when Encik L-P with his Levi501 blue jeans walks up on stage and shows us his latest gimmick, we look him in the eyes and say 'Hah! We're not buying one.' Encik L-P will be negatively affected by this given his health considerations and will decide to relent and sell the iPhone cheap cheap till they are as worthless as Po Chai Pills.

Ok so that will not work. In a stare out game with Apple, I blinked first and bought myself the iPhone. I am at your mercy, master...I'm not worthy... Yes master? The iPad? Ok I'll order three now...

Big Brother's Watching

The delivery service at Amazon.com has always lived up to my expectations. Yes, I always choose the cheapest option, which in turn takes quite a while for the book to reach me, but I don't mind. However, the latest package took a couple of weeks longer than the stipulated time. When it arrived it looked like it just barely survived a journey in a Toyota.

Not so virgin package

The culprit

So Big Brother is the cause for this delay and mess heh? This is the first time I've heard of KKDN (Kementerian Keselamatan Dalam Negeri) and the first time I've had one of my packages opened by them. I imagine there must be this group of people sitting in a room opening packages and reading other people's books and touching people's things? Sounds like a dream job! Note to self : Never buy lingerie or underwear online.