my new blog

I have a new blog here! Come visit me in my newest site at picatho.blogspot.com.

Pig's year comes with pig's shit!

The "no water notice" disgusts me. Yesterday I received a notice from the JBA of Kedah. Mentioned that "Gangguan akan terganggu selama 12 jams iaitu dari jam 9.00 pagi hingga jam 9.00 malam pada 18hb.Februari 2007(Ahad) ini desebabkan oleh kerja-kerja pembaikan paip air utama 200mm dan 150mm di kawasan perusahaan Kulim." It would affect many areas and estates.

I just can't understand why they particularly chose to give a large number of Chinese community "a no water" present (hardship) on the 1st day of the Chinese New Year. Is that the head of JBA Kulim "no brain" or is that the celebration of CNY "not being respected"?

Haai! What to do when facing such kind of boar-ing thing made by the pig-headed administer. I'm yet to choose between 1) Store water for CNY usage; 2) Flee to my daughter's house for CNY festivity.

Books that I've won

Lydia autographed her book, Life's Like That - "Dear Robert, Congratulations on wining this book in my blog contest. Hope you like the book. Honk!"

Life's Like That is a collection of amusing meditations on Malaysian life written in a humour way. This book is worth reading, for its exciting story and its insight into life in contemporary Malaysia.

I rarely recommend a book, mostly because my tastes differ from those of other people. I must make an exception in the case of this book.

Unless you are fundamentally opposed to facing some of the harsh realities of this bolehland, I highly recommend this book. It will dedicate some smiles as you read through chapter by chapter.

The author, Lydia is aggressively making publicity for her books. Her appearances are not limited only on papers and books stores. She was also having her chitchatting on page 205 of CLEO Feb. 07 and was showing up again her same old personal photo. Perhaps that particular photo is her favorite one, I think so!

Is God the ultimate arbiter?

I was reading intensively these few days about the Vatican enraged by magazine's confessional expose which was reported by Reuters on Jan 31.

Differences between official Roman Catholic doctrines and what priests told Mr Riccardo Bocca, an investigative reporter for L'Espresso, were had been found after a series of fake confessions.

Over the issue of euthanasia, a priest told Bocca not to worry too much because God would be the ultimate arbiter.

In another confessional box he faked being HIV positive and was told by a priest that whether or not he used a
condom in order not to pass the virus to the woman he loved was "a very personal matter of conscience".

On homosexuality, one priest told him: "Well, homosexuality is a tendency which is a valid human expression. There are even homosexual priests and lesbian nuns." Asked if he should openly declare his homosexuality, the priest told him: "Generally the best thing to do is to be yourself. Come clean. Do what the English call ’coming out’."

The Church teaches that homosexuality is not a sin but homosexual acts are.

I've also hopped over to read the related forum regarding to "is masturbation a sin?"

But then, I'm blurred in the din of the sin world over this equation - using of condom = masturbation = prostitution = homosexual act = the sin of wasting seed.

Would god by then be the final arbiter considering sin or sinless of these acts!

Sit back for this CNY

At the like period of the preceding years, I would have started stocking up CNY groceries, changed new notes and gotten red packets, in order to welcome the CNY festival.

For this year under the new economy, I think I have to lean to tighten my belt. Why? Simply because all the while, those extra prices of petrol, cigarette, toll, fuel, those can eat and those can't eat, had have devouring my income. So there is not much left for my reserve and so in my budget.

Some more, the pricing condition of commodities is worsened this year as reported. The prices of seafood have made a double jump. Vegetables have taken the flood's reason to cost more. One thing for sure, a dollar of today would be exchanged for lessor goods as compared to the previous year's dollar.

As I could feel with all the coolness of marketplaces this year. Chinese people are not warring anymore for CNY goods like before. One of my customers was saying that business is like erectile dysfunction and he has used to "hitting housefly at his store" this time.

Looking around, the immaterial (spiritual) moods which are more important than material (fat foods) mood is aggravated.

At first I thought that the toll agreements inked between the government and highway concessionaires would be made transparent by the Cabinet so as the toll's hike be able to be seen through with clarity. Unfortunately the Cabinet had lastly said "No" and these agreements be remained as secret. That means the government's subsidies was/is channeling to whose pocket remains unclear and is under OSA.

No "tong tong chiang" music in supermarkets? That's why MCA Youth is fighting with Recording Industry of Malaysia (RIM) and Public Performance Malaysia (PPM) over the Chinese NY song royalty issue.

It's sad that the Section 16B of the Copyright Act which was amended in 2000 to confer a new right known as performers' right, had produced many blades in a synthetic manner for cash-cow mechanisms to generate income.

Under the new section, performers should be paid royalties if their sound recordings were broadcast, performed or communicated to the public. And PPM, Music Authors Copyrights Protection Bhd (MACP) and Performers and Artistes Rights (M) S/B (PRISM) were being selected as collecting bodies.

Assuming that one has paid an Astro's subscription of which loyalties had been paid by Astro to the so called collecting body, do you think that it's fare for a restaurant to be charged with fees again for showing up the Astro's program at its premises?

Another emotional disturbance is that IRB imposes tax on allowances. Thus making employees' pocket become shrinkage.

With all sorts of these elements, lets see how far one could spend during this CNY and for the rest of 2007. May the mood of this coming CNY be less festive! For me, certainly yes!

I got a "honk"

I'm going to buy the book "Honk! if you're Malaysian" by Lydia Teh. This had been one of my new year resolutions to be accomplished. This is perhaps my most frivolous resolution. You may snigger at the implication that one can simply determines to do such little thing. But I figure I can at least get some credit from it. Doesn't mean for the reason just to keep my word to buy it. It's my anxiousness to be enlightened by its contents and be learnt from how Lydia narrated about honk. Last Friday, I finally got it. unintentionally also got another copy of "Secret of Graphology".

With a cup of coffee, few pieces of cookie and a pack of cigarette put in order at a corner of the Gurney's Starbucks, I sat down and started to use my index finger to moisten with saliva at times so as to flick over these two books.

A sip of coffee follows by several flicks of pages. My brain which is retarded has gradually building up some implications on the "honk". To be frank, I'm quite concerned with or about the outlook, footprint, and the presentation, rather then its contents. Maybe I'm a businessman who has lessened with other predilections, being business minded, have had built up these concerns.

I remembered, the time when I had walked out from the MPH to gather with my wife, I immediately received her usual initial query. "you buy what?" "nuh, 2 books for reading." I answered and concurrently passed the whole plastic bag to her according to my established habit. Means that whatever my newly shopped goods would be passed on to her for carrying. That's part of my bad addictions, It's too bad!

As she took out the books from plastic bag in order to have a visual percept of what's that, she felt out and rose up the "honk", "wah! 29 bucks for this comic book you also 'seh tak' (deserved) to buy." "no lah, it's a book about the contemporary instincts of Malaysian. That stupid publisher have had over cover it like a comic book, don't you open up and see?" I explained and added, "Its cover had also caused my misconception at first sight as if it was a comic book which was oddly displayed amongst other conventional books in the shelf. A half covered background graphical image would just be nice."

"Nah! this one "Secret of Graphology" is worthy lah! only 5 bucks." Another comment she had made. I smiled with advice, "don't ever try to judge beautiful woman by her rear appearance. Sometime at the back "sui sui" but the front like a "kui"."

Okay! let me beg a pardon to compare my said 2 books; It's completely based on my own thoughts after my Starbuck's digest. "honk" hereafter be referred to "honk! if you're Malaysian" & "graph" hereafter be referred to "secrets of graphology".

Honk priced at 29 bucks, graph priced at 5. Of course the price differentiation does concern me.

Graph is bound with much smaller size about 4x5 whether honk is bound with about A5 size. I love a smaller one for the advantage of handiness for travel.

Graph has plenty of colorful images and illustrations inside, making reading be blissful. The not so many black-and-white cartoons found inside the honk were small in size and less freshened.

The font used in honk is much larger than graph. Ah! it probably suits my old eyes.

Graph is written in a directive way whereas honk is written in an amusive way by using simple English. I like that because I don't have to get frequent helps from dictionary.

Both contents which are of different categories are not fair to be compared hereof. Meanwhile some phases of honk do really delight my heart and has given me mettle to read on. I've reckoned especially if I were a Chinaman who're not typically wearing Pagoda singlet and baggy drawer, wouldn't be punched & kicked if I'd tried to kiss the author, referring on her saying in chapter 1. Some more, luckily I'm not an industrious wife (car) washer! Hmm! I'm pulling the leg of Lydia!

Well, my conclusion is, honk is value for capacity especially for the younger generation to recognize those old tricks and bywords. But the price tag might ponder some students pausing to put one's hand in one's pocket.

My 1st NY resolution came out of the blue

The real celebration for 2007 is all about moving forward. Okay, it's a bit late at this time of year, I would normally have already scrounged up PDA and have jotted down all the things I'd like to improve about myself in this new year. The year would already be in full swing, and I'd be on my way to checkout for completing my resolutions. But this year? What a lopsided vehicle.

My 1st resolution of which I've to subscribe for the Star's epaper. What I thought was a money saving conception because it would be paid less from the conventional delivery. But what Hokkianese had said, "tou chit kwan, too teow ah moh hwan." Something like first trimester blues!

Although I had successfully registered with ebrowse.bluehyppo.com but when it came to the payment session for subscription, It was a mad thing. Hmm, I did'nt know whether I was stupid or the Tmnet was stupid. Submitting my correct IC numbers in order to verify my online payment had has turned out to be incorrect, according to their return.

I remembered I'd have submitted a photo copy of my IC together with a duly completed application form when applying for the account of Streamyx many years ago. By right, they should have a right record of that. So I went to my Streamyx's account information page, thinking that it would be an ABC by just editing my personal info, but it was not that easy. It was completely chanceless to perform the task online. They made a written note asking for a personal handling of documentation. After many attempts, all were had failed. I stupidly laughed to myself, "It's called the Malaysian way of online business!" Let better make a highjump and forget about this at this moment.

Next, I'm going to buy Surbex 750, Abbott's vitamin supplements. I believe this to be a matter of concentration, nutrition, and the use of brain to trap certain special set of circumstances. I'll keep you posted.