management made easy, in 6 parables........

This is the funniest way to teach management, found it while browsing someone else's blog this morning... See if it makes good bed time story.

Lesson 1
A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor.

Before she says a word, Bob says, "I'll give you $800 to drop that towel, "

After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob After a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs. When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, "Who was that?"

"It was Bob the next door neighbor," she replies.

"Great," the husband says, "did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?"

Moral of the story:
If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2
A priest offered a Nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg.

The nun said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?" The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.

The nun once again said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?"
The priest apologized "Sorry sister but the flesh is weak."

Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way.

On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129
It said, "Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory."

Moral of the story:
If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.

Lesson 3
A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out.

The Genie says, "I'll give each of you just one wish."

"Me first! Me first!" says the admin clerk. "I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world."

Puff! She's gone.

"Me next! Me next!" says the sales rep. "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life."

Puff! He's gone.

"OK, you're up," the Genie says to the manager.

The manager says, "I want those two back in the office after lunch."

Moral of the story:
Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing?"

The eagle answered: " Sure , why not."
So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested.

All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story:
To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree," sighed the turkey, "but I haven't got the energy."

"Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull. "They're packed with nutrients." !

The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree.

He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.

Moral of the story:
Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

Lesson 6
A little bird was flying south for the Winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him.

As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.

A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is necessary your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's better to keep your voice low and watch - enemy or friend!

Visit the real PATCH here

happy birthday yi yi.......

Today, the youngest member of Asrama Budi turns 2 years old!!

Cuuuuuuutttteeeeeee.............

Facebook: click here to visit the real PATCH

now that we're in mitigation phase.........

As of last Friday, Malaysia has put its H1N1 control from CONTAINMENT EFFORT to MITIGATION PHASE. That's just a fanciful way to say that at this point, the H1N1 virus is already present in the general population, and the effort to quarantine and contain cases of H1N1 patients would bring very little fruitful results.

So now, what can be done is just to minimise complications, treat those who are ill, and hope for the best. Nevertheless, investigations are still being carried out just that contact tracing will be reduced and people will not be put under quarantine anymore.

Hospitalisation and isolation is still done, only to those who might get severely ill from this flu.

To make thins simple, these are the important few things to remember as we are in this phase now...

1. Social Distancing - 1 meter or 3 feet from potentially sick people, and avoid crowded places. This can sometimes be impossible (ie in the lifts, public transport etc) but remember also that significant contact occurs when someone splutter respiratory fluids / tampias on you or you're within 1 m radius of a H1N1 patient for approximately 4 hours
2. Protect yourself - the 3 ply masks (surgical masks) are good enough when traveling out in crowded place, although N95 is best but can be costly nowadays. I saw N95 being sold for RM15 at Sandakan airport. The point of the mask is to filter out the air that we breath in, so if we adjust the mask so much so that we breath easily like normal, chances are we're wearing it wrong. We should be slightly uncomfortable when wearing a filtering mask. Logic, right?
3. Proper hygiene - wash hands with soap often when in public places. We don't need a Phase 6 Pandemic Influenza to teach us this.
4. Cough / Sneeze Etiquette - disposable tissue best, handkerchiefs alternative. Sleeve, hand, or even turning away while sneezing into open air is bad. Close, close, close that orifice.
5. If not feeling well, seek medical attention.
6. Call the bugger by its proper name - no more swine flu please... Human-swine Influenza is still okay, but Selsema Babi is just wrong... Influenza A (H1N1) how difficult is it to say it right?

Facebook: Visit the real PATCH here

10k hits........

So the hits counter shows 9,991 visitors for now... 9 more and I'll join the 10k hits club... whoppeee. Kinda pathetic as compared to Tun Mahathir's blog that joins the million-hits club in mere days... heh.

arteo's third day in kuantan, a misadventure.....

Well, okay, the day went well, sessions were fruitful, there were many issues discussed, and then I went out at night, absconding myself from the last session...

I saw there was a sale at Giordano, the usual t-shirt I wore that cost RM50 for 3 now selling only RM40. After dinner I joined DrLJF for teh tarik and then went on to get my Giordanos. That done at about 9pm, I had some time to walk around Berjaya Megamall, and decided to watch Ice Age 3 at 10pm.

With 1 hour to waste I walked around the mall, and happened across this newly opened Adidas outlet. Yep, I came out with a new shoe, but not without feeling a tad irritated first. See, I was asking the lady if she has the bigger size for the shoe I was interested in. She checked some tags and confirmed there is a pair of size 11. Great. So after a few minutes waiting, she came back with size 10 and said that she can't find size 11, and why don't I try size 10 instead. Okay Madam smartie-pants, I told her I wouldn't fit in it but she gave me a blur look. I thought, okay, maybe she needs to see the shoe rip before she understands, so I sat and tried putting it on. To be nice to the shoe, I asked for a shoe horn. She never heard of it. She asked a colleague. Colleague and colleague's colleagues also never heard of shoe horn. Never mind, so I explained, something that looks like a rice spoon, only narrower and used to fit shoes, so to protect the shoes, and make it easy for clients to put it on, but no, not in their universe. Okay. I pulled the sorry pair of shoes on and showed to her, bloody tight. Need 1 size bigger, and we went like, tak jumpa. I asked her, what do you mean tak jumpa? Is it lost in the shop? Is it being displayed? What? She asked for a few more minutes and went back in again, and after 10 minutes, came out with the box of size 11 shoes. I reserve my comments on stoopid lazy asses like this. Ah, darn I said it.

So I told her, after putting it on and liking it much, that I'll wear it, and have my Hush Puppies (yes, must mention) oxfords put in the box instead. She sort of retorted "PAY FIRST" In perfect 2 words phrase kind of sentence without any grammatical errors. I swallowed my own poison and let out a soft "I know"....

Then, at the cinema, while booking the ticket I saw the seats were full, to the brim, and I was lucky to get a seat at the corner lot, fourth row from the back. I wasn't really that early, but by the time I sat down, I was the only one on fourth row. I knew it, I'm gonna have some peoples' asses rubbed on my face when the show starts, and yes, prediction was right at the moment when Sid went away from the herd, when Manny was talking to Diego and when Sid was doing stunts with the eggs. The horror didn't end there, the ultimately cina bitch sitting next to me had her canto-pop ring tone chiming twice throughout the show. WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE SO BLOODY DENSE ABOUT CINEMA ETIQUETTE, AND THEY HAVE TO HAVE CANTO-POP RING TONES, AND THEY MUST SIT NEXT TO ME????

After the movie, the mall was all closed so I was just following the crowd to get to the exit. Suddenly a joker security guard came and sang to us (yes, he was either mocking / flirting with the girls in front of me or that he has a disorder that makes his speech kind of melodious in the wrongest way) "Nak ke mana?? Nak ke mana??" So we said we're getting out, then he sang again "Tak boleh, tak boleh, pusing balik, pusing balik..." repeatedly, I'm telling you. The girls went all confused and I as usual, got irritated with the whole musical drama, so I asked him, "Encik, bagitau, nak keluar ikut mana?" in a stern voice and I was wearing my Kementerian Kesihatan t-shirt. He pointed to the way out. And that felt normal. I turned around and said to myself, "menyanyi semacam bodoh" and the girls giggled. Yes, acknowledgement! Needed that much.

On the way back to the hotel, I passed by the mamak shop where I had a drink earlier, and wanted to try the mutton soup, supposedly very nice according to DrL. Then a Benggali (no racist remark intended) came to wait on my table, telling me soup kambing habis. Her said only sup yeakeh is available. I went, WHAT? Sup Yeakeh, sup yeakeh... I almost asked for the boss to come, then he pointed out at the menu he grabbed from the next table, Sup Ekor. Owh.. what's the whole thing with YEAKEH?? Can't blame him for being Benggali though... That wasn't my most enjoyable supper, first the soup came without a spoon, so I asked for it, the spoon came. Then, I realised I had to hold the bone while chewing on the meat, so I asked for a fork, and after a few minutes it came. I had some soup splashes on the table and on my hand, and the napkin came after a few more minutes. Damn, next time anybody comes to eat at this place, make a bloody CHECKLIST!!

After that I came up to the room, tired and full, and as I went into the room, I wondered why the room was warm, the aircond was not working... So I called the reception counter, asking for engineering to come have a look. I introduced myself as room 609, and she wanted to know my name. I almost asked her, shouldn't she know? I am the guest and she has the bloody guest list in front of her. What is this, some sort of security password? She should be greeting me by my name! After I told her, she went "Okay" phew, glad I got the password right!! But I didn't want to think much of it, I just want to have my aircond done, and sleep...

But before I sleep, I have to type this down... yea, what a day.

arteo sick in kuantan........

Morning started with slight gritty scratchy feeling in the throat, and slight temperature. I thought it might be the air conditioning blasting the whole night, and it got better by breakfast time. However I felt lethargic through out the lectures and the group work, so I sneaked up to the room and slept through lunch.

During the afternoon session, I was still not feeling better, and salbutamol couldn't seem to sustain effect. I thought I was just cold from the A/C but DrLJF felt my head and confirmed it was a fever. So I took a walk to get my Panadol Actifast (the only type that works) and Ubat Batuk Kelapa Laut Afrika (none else would do) and came back to the hotel and slept through dinner.

At about 8:30pm, I got dressed and set out for jalan jalan cari makan, but disappointingly, I only came across mamak style restaurants... and I want something authentically Kuantanese... although I must say I don't quite know what I'm looking for. So I stopped by at the pharmacy to get ipratropium (since I think I've overdosed on salbutamol and getting this cramps in my calves) then sat at Starbucks for dinner (mocha and Oriental BBQ Chicken Pie).

Got some handkerchiefs from Parkson since I'll be coughing a bit, hopefully it will go off completely tomorrow. Don't want the airport thermoscan to pick up my fever and get me quarantined...

arteo goes to kuantan........

Woo hoo... My first time going to a place in Pahang other than Genting!!

The day started slow and normal, as I got up and dressed to attend a course on ePerolehan at INTAN Sabah (dreading the amount of sleep I'll get during lecture) suddenly I got a call from DrC, my boss from JKNS asking me if I'd attend an Epidemiology Techinal meeting in Kuantan on her behalf... did not take half my brain cell to think about it, of course I would!

So the flight took off at about noon, and after a couple of hours transit in KLIA, I am in Kuantan for the first time...

The session started tonight with a briefing on Outbreak Management, and I walked to Parkson just to get my 5L of drinking water. Forgot to bring my camera along...

Maybe tomorrow I'll have time to do some jalan jalan cari makan...

pom pom pom pom pom... pom pom... pom pom...

Remember this song during kindergarten?

Bapak ku pulang dari Kota
Bapak ku belikan kereta
Kereta kecil warna merah
Boleh ku bawa ke sekolah
Pom pom pom pom pom.... pom pom... pom pom...
Kereta kecil ku berbunyi
Marilah adik mari naik
Boleh ku bawa jumpa nenek...

In a midst of getting a ride, but not kecil, warna merah definitely...

And maybe when it grows up, it can become something like this...

And maybe it will transform into something like this... hahaha..

Nice.....

tiny.........

you came
uninvited
you left
without a goodbye

yet your brief stay made so much
gave reason to life
and what it means to have it
or not
to think that it is in my hands
rather should it at all
showed what fear feels like
in desolation
suffocation
with desperation
for grace

you left
so I can know that grace
when pressed
when persecuted
when struct down
crushed, abandoned, destroyed
yet not

life
may be the least i could offer
yet you surrendered
so that I may live instead

7 years memorial

Alex, June 26, 2002

a tribute to the king of pop......

Yes it is still very surreal... almost like hearing news about planes crashing into WTC buildings in USA, the news about the death of Michael Jackson is just as unbelievable.

arteo in bali: day 7 - ubud part 2

PICS TAKEN WITH HTC TYTNii

Ah, after installing CS3 to my office computer, life gets a little more fun, so I can edit my pics here and blog from office... but I can only do it after I finish all my other work, which is usually around 10pm... like now.

Anyway, to continue with my trip in Ubud, after the SONY T77 died on me (after the pictures at the Luwak coffee farm) so I had to make do with the HTC, but surprisingly, the picture quality shows better contrasting in black and white compared to Sony pictures. I guess not all together bad la...

Made took me around the village where we see much more of authentic Balinese lifestyle, than of those at the tourist highway... these pretty ladies here are wearing kebaya, but theirs is made of more translucent material than that we find at home. They are gathering at a wedding kenduri.

I don't mind joining them at the back of the truck!

This was where we had lunch that afternoon, nasi ayam campur. Some sort of babi guling like, but made with chicken and its innards.

Nice landscaping.

Mixture of roasted chicken parts...

Sewn straw roof.

Ladies chatting.

See the bunny in the basket?

The dog from the hotel I was staying in.

That evening after Made sent me back, I took a short nap and went on again on foot around Ubud town, this time journeying southward, looking for another famous Balinese cuisine that one has to try when in Ubud - Bebek Bengil.

Street folks playing cards.

Monkey Forest.

Monkeys here are not as nasty as the ones in Uluwatu. They asked for food nicely.

A monkey enjoying its BLT.

Now, this is what I am talking about, woo hoo...

Gigantic monkey statue at the entrance of Monkey Forest.

Paddy fields behind some residential.

I saw some stickers in Kuta saying "I love Bali Dogs" and I thought it was some slang for something vulgar (well, most of the stickers were vulgar anyway) then I saw this and went, Oh.

Finally found my Bebek Bengil restaurant - at this place called the Dirty Duck.

Nice interior design.

This statue to remind us the importance of Family Planning, heh.

Can you believe this is part of the restaurant's interior landscape?

Oily dip, sambal, acar and roasted duck.

View inside one of the Pura for night performance.

Street of Ubud, I think this is Hanuman Street.

More paddy fields.

Elvis wind chime.

Balinese masks...

Taking out the Barong.

Kids playing football in the field.

That night, I went to see Ramayana show, at Istana Ubud.

And the HTC died here too... after the show I went over to another Club called Ubud Silver and Coffee for a live jazz gig there... superb. Got their album, authographed. Too bad the gig ended early, at about 1130pm. The owner said that some residents nearby used to complain to the police about the noise.

I have to ask, What noise? Who would complain having nice jazz playing even if its midnight?

arteo got temp tattoo..........

PICS TAKEN WITH HTC TYTNii

Two of the temporary tatts I got from Bali - Bungai terung - a traditional Iban design that marks the coming of age for a guy. Actually I was considering getting the real one, but lets see how it sits on my shoulder before making such permanent decision. The last time I tried the designs on, I used a marker pen on myself, and stained the bedsheets... hah.

Kinda cool, eh?

I later got myself another Rangda, but I dont have a picture showing it.

arteo went to life&style launch........

Been meaning to post this up but what can I do when procrastination is my middle name...

The launch was officiated on the 23rd May at BlueNote, Shangri-La TgAru Resort. It was by invitation only, so I was quite honoured to be amongst some of the most upclass people in KK/Sabah... of course I felt a little uncomfortable... well, my style is mamak and hawker food only ma...

One of the main attraction for the night, this guy who came and told us he is not an entertainer but a magician. Or was it the other way round... but he never told us the difference anyway. The other main attraction (not pictured here because too blurry) was Daphne Iking in her oh-so-glittery dress.

The big boss giving a speech.

John, Phyllis, arteo

...again...

...err... someone with Phyllis...

John with Mel... watch the hand, ahhha!!

Why am I writing like I am drunk... Ah, yes, probably just going back to the mood of that night...

when I had a bloody mary and a couple other cocktails...

the bloody mary...

early morning chat........

I just got to know that JoSii is expecting again, CONGRATULATIONS!! And we had this chat in the morning via Y!M...

josii: You wanna hear about what they said during my first trip to the doc?
arteo: yea, what did they say..
josii: Let me recall..
josii: Doc asked me to do urine test to reconfirm my own home test
josii: She wasn't sure if kids already knew or not
josii: So after she did the test, she didn't come right out to say it
josii: Josh wandered over to the sink where she was, saw the two lines and piped up '2 lines means Mummy's having a baby'
josii: doc was impressed that he knew
josii: She didn't know that I'd shown them the test I did at home and explained it all to them
arteo: haha..
josii: Then doc tells me when baby is due
josii: Josh says 'Not if it dies first'
josii: Doc a bit taken aback
arteo: ah ...
josii: I said don't worry, I've had miscarriage before so kids know all about it
arteo: what did you tell josh exactly?
josii: Doc also had her pet dog in the room with her, and she told the kids his name is Harry
josii: Anyway, then Josh asks 'So, is it a girl or a boy?'
josii: Doc says "His name is Harry, so he must be a boy"
josii: Josh looks at her one kind and says 'the baby, not the dog'
arteo: haha
arteo: i miss them...

**************

josii: The other day he related this conversation he had with his friend
josii: The friend asked him 'Are you gay?'
arteo: gasp
josii: Josh said "Mummy, I answered 'yes' cos I'm happy mah"
josii: "Then this boy said that gay means that a boy likes a boy and a girl likes a girl'
josii: They learn such stuff so young
arteo: so you taught him to use the word gay to mean happy? Only Shakespeare use that word to mean happy
josii: Well, I wanted to reclaim the original meaning of the word in the English language
arteo: haha
josii: Just like bitch is the original term for a female dog
josii: used in that context, there's nothing wrong with the word
arteo: yea, now people use the word biatch
josii: It's people who bastardise the English language
arteo: and by saying bastardise, you don’t mean kids out of wedlock...
josii: exactly

congratulations, dr. sheena.........

Hey, welcome to the club...

An excerpt from the Oath of Asapth and Yohanan for you:

As for you, be strong, do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded, The Lord is with you, while you are with Him, If you keep His pact, follow His commandments, cleaving to them, You will be regarded as His saints in the eyes of all flesh, and they will say: Happy the people whose [lot] is such, happy the people whose God is the Lord.

the day when the big grand boss supreme overlord came to visit.....

Some of you might still remember how some time ago, my whole week's schedule was disrupted when the highest authority in the Health Ministry, that is the Y.A.B. Menteri Kesihatan himself, came to visit.

So, yeah, last May. 29th, YAB Datuk Liow Tiong Lai (who apparently share the last 2 chinese names with my Dad) came to Queen Elizabeth Hospital to discuss the Key Performance Indices for sabah Health Department.

Sitting on the main row, Ketua Setiausaha Kesihatan, Menteri Kesihatan, Exco Kesihatan Negeri and Ketua Pengarah Kesihatan. Pengarah Kesihatan Negeri was out in front giving the presentation.

DrTajul sharing a thought...

The goy showing only his whitish hair, is Datuk DrRamlee, Timbalan Ketua Pengarah Kesihatan Awam.

arteo in bali: day 7 - seeing the real bali......

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Morning started when I woke up to room service with banging on the door. The night before I've asked for a wake up call at 7am, since the HTC fails as an alarm clock. The wake up call was so enthusiastic, I was glad I had the wooden latch on my antique door, haha. Anyway, breakfast was already served when I opened the door, nothing much to shout about, but I've never had a room service breakfast in my life before.

Toast, Balinese coffee and freshly cut banana, papaya and pineapple. What else could I ask for?

Foggy morning in Ubud.

The previous day, I planned for a trip to Batu Bulan to watch Barong dance. At first I just wanted a taxi ride there, so I may watch the show and walk the town a little bit, watch some stone carvers do their stuffs, so I agreed on a one way trip to Batu Bulan for Rp80.000. The guy's got a new Avanza and the aircond works well, so, ok la, no big deal.

It had been raining last night, a thunderstorm in fact.

The whole time on the way to Batu Bulan, we had quite a good chat, the driver and I. His name was Made Suarnawa, he works his own paddy field if he hasn't got a costumer to bring around. He has a typical Balinese life with his typical Balinese family living in their typical Balinese house in a typical Balinese village called Gianyar. What fascinated me about this man, was the way he related Hindu philosophy with life. Okay, maybe not the extremely scholarly way, but he told me what told to him by his dad, and the whole journey he was explaining Balinese culture that we come across on our way, like the shrines, the offerings, the leafy stuff they hang outside their house made from coconut leaves... it was like Balinese Culture 101 in a cab ride!!

I was still sticking to my plan, until during breakfast (we arrived at Batu Bulan a tad too early so we had breakfast while waiting for the show to start) he told me of a place where they process coffee as a small agrotourism industry and they keep some civet cats for visitors to see. I have seconds thought about getting him to drive me around for the day.

Civet cat, as you'd have read from my previous entries, is the type of cat that shit out the most expensive coffee in the world. True, I've done the coffee before, and though I don't actually find it significantly better than other coffees, but hey, it's exotic!

The musicians getting ready for the Barong show.

I first learned about Barong dance from a show on TV called Sink or Swim, or something like that. I was equally as fascinated, by the concept of good versus evil and no one wins (somewhat like ying yang) and for this trip, its a must see. The ticket's slightly more expensive too, Rp80.000, but I don't mind.

The stage.

If I were to wear a flower on my ear like that here in Malaysia, people will say I'm cuckoo... here, I have pretty ladies putting it on for me... actually she was doing that so I'd take a picture with her and she'd charge me for a Polaroid, but nah, not after I've paid Rp80.000 for the ticket, sorry lass...

Blessing of the stage before the show began.

Barong actually bears an uncanny resemblance to the Chinese lion dance, also manned by 2 persons, but with less kungfu... and the Barong makes a tapping sound by opening and closing its mouth - tap tap tap tap tap!!

The show started with a music overtone, then the Barong comes out and acted cute... or at least it was trying to be, I think.

Then the monkey comes and play with Barong, picking on its fleas and offering it to the audience. Again, trying to be cute, I think.

Then suddenly, three angry men in masks came out. It didn't really showed through the dance, but the accompanying synopsis explained that a village boy has been killed by a tiger, and the men thought it was the Barong who killed him. So when the villagers tried attacking the Barong, the monkey attacked and bit off one of the poor chap's nose. That was the first act, and I was quite glad that the story gets easier to understand after this.

Then some Legong dance, which is a usual accompaniment to any performances. These 2 dancers were supposed to be maids of Rangda, and they were looking for the servants of Goddess Kunti who were on their way to meet Patih (or the Prime Minister).

The servants of Goddess Kunti.

The Patih.

This is Goddess Kunti. She has a son called Sedewa, that will appear later in the show.

The story went like this... Kunti had promised to sacrifice Sedewa to appease Rangda, the evil witch. At first, Kunti was hesitating to let go of her son, but then an evil spirit came to posses her and she ran amok, ask ordered that Sedewa be brought to Rangda's castle in the forest. Patih was supposed to have pity on Sedewa, but the evil spirit came again to him, so he also became merciless and ordered that Sedewa be tied to a tree for Rangda to devour.

Above, left to right: Goddess Kunti, Sedewa and Patih. Below, Kunti throwing a tantrum, while the hairy figure at the exit was the evil spirit.

The evil spirit possessing the Patih.

Sedewa tied to the tree. Before Rangda came, the Lord Siva came to grant Sedewa immortality.

Grand entry of Rangda.

Rangda actually is quite a funny figure. She was supposed to be the evil Queen of the Underworld, or a witch, and she always has her tongue stuck out and her striped boobies actually show through her long bushy hair and tentacles.

Rangda tried to bite Sedewa and cut him open with a sword, but Sedewa was invincible. She later surrendered to Sedewa and asked for mercy. Sedewa agreed and Rangda was sent to heaven. (Heaven? Well, I don't know, I'm just quoting the pamphlet)

Rangda took out a white hanky in surrender... or was it that she cried and used that to wipe her tears...

One of Rangda's maids were called Kalika, and when she knew about Rangda been sent to Heaven, he also came to ask from Sedewa to be sent to heaven. Sedewa refused, and Kalika became angry. So she turned into a boar and attacked Sedewa.

But Sedewa defeated the boar, and while it was still down on the floor, something else came up.

Look at the coloured part to see what came up...

Kalika then changed herself into a bird and attacked Sedewa, but defeated again.

Finally she changed into Rangda, and Sedewa could not kill her. (But didn't she kill the first Rangda?)

Sedewa then transforms into Barong so his power will match that of Rangda. And in this fight, Barong was as powerful as Rangda and the struggle goes on and on.

In this photo, Rangda and Barong seems to agree to disagree, the only way to coexist harmoniously.

The followers of Barong later came out to her him to attack the Rangda.

Rangda put a spell on them so they will kill themselves by stabbing themselves in the flesh with their keris.

The Keris Dance.

They were released from the spell only after the Barong came to their rescue. The end.

After the show, Made was still waiting for me outside the temple, and since he was going to be free for the day, I agreed for him to bring me around, especially to see the Luwak coffee plantation.

We took the unconventional route, through the villages.

The terrace paddy plantation... beautiful.

Ah, finally, the plantation... here below is a cocoa tree, and coffee tree. Luckily we don't have mocha tree or these 2 would be redundant.. heh.

And here is the luwak, or civet cat, literally the goose laying golden eggs for the coffee planters.

The golden egg. Or nugget. Whatever...

One of my best photos for the day.

Menyamar luwak. Ripe coffee cherries are actually sweet, no wonder the luwaks like them.

Raw coffee seeds, or beans.

Actually the day did not end here, but my T77 died here. Luckily I have the HTC on stand by. Day 7 reporting to continue later. Stay put!

today in history........

...about 6 years ago, to be exact.

I reported duty to the Director of Queen Elizabeth Hospital, and thus began my roller coaster ride in trying to keep myself sane at work... struggling with issues in carrying out duty as God's scalpel... or playing God at times...

But most of all, I treasure the opportunities to see how life works and fail in close proximity, and from an angle at larger scale; that I have come to appreciate my own [life] much more, and to want to make the best and most out of my transient stay here.

Glad to be one of the lucky few that can say I love what I am doing now. If work is shit, as it very often feels like, I am just more than happy to be the dung-beetle. Heh.

arteo in bali: day 6 - getting cultured........

Ah, actually the photo shoot didn't end with that funny looking trollish deco statue, since my computer compartmentalise pictures by dates taken, some of the photo went to the other day... so here are still some pics from the outing I mentioned earlier, that few Bintangs at the convi store...

This is just a funny sign board saying FREE POOL CHEEP BINTANG BLOODY COOL. I'll explain the usage of the term 'bloody' later...

Miro, Malte, Florien's friend, Florien and myself in front of a convi store.


Monday, May 4, 2009

The next morning, I got my things packed for Ubud, and I had brunch one last time before going on my own way. It was kinda sad to separate ways now, but the gang would go back the next day and I have to stick to my Ubud plan. They did Ubud as a day trip, but later I would realise that one cannot do Ubud as a day trip and claim that he/she has seen Bali's culture at its best...

Goofing for the camera
arteo, Ateng, Malte, Sabiqa, Ayu and Aiza

(thanks guys, my Bali trip was so much more fun with you guys around!!)

After checking out of the hotel, I was set to find my way to Ubud - there are several ways one can go there, by taxi (remember not to ask to be charged by odometer) or the bus (few connecting buses in between cities or rather towns) or of course you can drive yourself there. At first I wanted to try the local transport and go by bus (m load was lighter anyway, I left most of my luggage at the hotel) but learning that it was too much hustle, I decided to go with the taxi for Rp60.000.

Few more pictures of Kuta before I leave for Ubud.

The word 'bloody' may sound rude or harsh in some culture, but not the all-Australian Bali, where bloody is used as an amplifier of an adjective to make it more extreme, and the usage is just as common as our usage for words like "super-duper" when we were young (i.e: the show was super-duper fantastic) or "giler-giler" in a more local context (i.e: uui, mi goreng mamak kat warung tu, sedap giler-giler tauuu...) or something closer to my home "si-beh" (i.e: ei, thau seng wa kua oo chi geh cha bo, si-beh swee eh....)

The banners and buntings outside the pubs definitely suggest that they do have bloody hell of fun time inside, haha...

Isn't this a fungal infection?

The same street buskers with their drums still performing.

Ah, not deterred by the hunting failure last night, I went on my own hunt for the famous Babi Guling and determined to have it for lunch. I went along the street past Kuta Market, and further.

Nope, this place seems to have something similar, but not exactly. Babi guling is babi guling. haha.

And further.

I was getting hungrier, but nothing else would do for lunch. I was a tourist on a special mission - like that fat bald guy from Bizarre Food, heh.

Until suddenly, from afar, I spotted a little emblem...

Yep, the feeling is almost like what Chris Columbus felt when he found America, I'm sure, maybe more. Well, maybe he wasn't that hungry.

I didn't really know how to go about it, seeing the ingredients on the table wasn't really something I would consider fine dining... but I had to try it, maybe just once.

Yea, the sight of Babe decapitated wasn't cute at all.

A close up of what I had for lunch, clockwise from top left: Baked pork-blood in banana leaves, sambal, minced pork satay on bamboo stick, innards in sisig style, skin from the head with some fur still attached for that extra gamy sensation, dried roasted liver, dried roasted intestine and deep fried piece of lard. Cholesterol count: don't mention, just eat...

And of course it came with a serving of pork soup. I think the most healthy bit of the meal was the Bintang.

Bloody meal, literally.

After that exotic lunch, I headed to Ubud in a cab, happy and fulfilled.

The cab driver was quite chatty and instead of taking the direct route to Ubud, he gave me a tour on the villages on a detour. So it took us about nearly 2 hours to reach Ubud. Just before I got off, he told me, to have the best Babi Guling in Ubud, go for Ibu Oka's. Damn, now I'm on my hunting mode again.

Ubud town.

Rangda.

Statues carved from Poros stone - of volcanic origin.

Local kids playing.

I stayed at a place promising paddy field view and hot shower - not knowing that every other accommodations also promise the same... But since the worker was very kind and hospitable, I don't mind the place here... except for my roommate - I'll show you later.

The balcony.

Antique feeling to the whole ambiance.

Here's my roommate I was talking about - this statue of Garuda stands just next to the bed... I just hope I don't have nightmare at night - which I didn't, anyway.

The sight of a hot shower definitely makes me alive again.

This is how I keep myself locked in the room... seriously.

The bed.

My roomate next to my bed. The place costs more per night but the operator charged me just Rp100.000 even without me asking for the discount. He said this price usually is for Indonesian, but for Bule (caucassian) it is Rp120.000... Now I passed as an Indonesian even without trying! Later he showed his surprise when I took out my Malaysian passport to register.

One of the many cultural stages that will hold performances at night. They traditionally have performances in a temple, or Pura, but this one is not a temple, but a school for cultural lessons.

Some nice landscapes in Ubud.

Even at the highlands, the surfers culture stil find its way into the market.

The bookshop where I got my Ramayana book, I thought I would enjoy the theatre better if I know the story line a little.

Didn't know Yuni has a house here... But Yunee bah kan spelling nya...

One would not have to worry about getting tickets for the shows as there would be numerous students like this selling tickets to the night performances, you'll find them everywhere starting in the evening. No extra comissions charges for buying from them. But my hotel operator was even more effective, he showed me a schedule of the week's performances and got the tickets ready for me, also at no extra charge.

The center of Ubud town, is the market.

One of the prize shots for this trip...

Inside Ubud market.

Streets were relatively relaxed except for when school is over, and the traffic builds up exponentially.

Vendor selling balloons on a motorbike.

The first evening I bought ticket to watch kecak dance. Wanting to get a good seat, I went about half an hour early. They were not ready to admit yet, so I went out to see if I can find Ibu Oka's famous BG.

One of the kecak dancers in front of the pura where the show was held.

Found it not far from the pura. Yea, I have to agree Bu Oka serves much less disgusting BG comparing to the one I had in Kuta. But for more expensive though...

Clockwise from top left: Fried innards in batter, fried lard, pork meat with special sauce on it, sauteed gourd (I think), and roasted pork parts (I think it's home made sausage - innards stuffed in intestine) or I rather not know, heh.

This meal costs Rp40.000. Hefty but tastes much nicer I have to say. I know I'm not being conned, the price was stated on the board.

Went back after dinner. In every town there has to be 3 pura, or temples. I can't remember the other 2 but Pura Dalem is usually meant for death / cremation services. I think the reason also they are showing the fire dance in this pura. Every temple is built as a devotion to one of the 3 Hindu major dieties.

Blessing of the stage and of the fire before the performance.

Right after that, 50 odss topless male dancers in sarong and udeng came out. The name kecak comes from the sounds they chanted throughout the show "kecak kecak kecak kecak, woosh woosh woosh, pheew pheeww, kecak kecak" or something like that. Its origin may not be originally Balinese, but it's like nothing I've ever seen before.

The story was taken from Rama and Sinta's sutra.

After that, the fire dance - an old man apparently in a trance holding a straw horse going around kicking the mound of coconut husks on fire, sending some women audience screaming. I was more amused by the screaming audiences, really.

Me and my udeng.

My late supper on my way back to the hotel. Bakso. Not nice. Rp10.000. Ubud is a dead town after the performance, so there's no where to go but to go back. Luckily too, because it started to rain right after I got back. So I had to sleep, watching MrGaruda, while the lightning flashes and the thunder rolling outside...


One of the greatest mistake I've done in this trip was to have left my charger in my main luggage in Kuta. I've posted the most pictures in this entry (85!), but for the next day (supposedly more exciting day) I was left with a dying camera... sigh.

the beginning of wisdom........

Munificent and magnanimous one,
Lofty, aspiring like a high green hill,
Beyond the reach of mind for good or ill,

Above the thrall of getting duties done,
Blazing blood-orange, ruddy as the Sun.

Peak of wisdom, compassionate, you fill
Me dear with holy joy and bliss until
Chanting songs of praise for you is done.

You're a blue sea of mercy, grey sky of space,
Pacific as Neptune, benevolent, benign,
Bestower of grace by gaze through sight divine.

My ardour flows to your beckoning face,
I dive into my heart obeying your sign,
Melting as a salt doll in your sea of grace

The name Sofie comes from Greek origin, meaning wisdom.

Peak of Wisdom by Alan Jacobs

arteo in bali: day 5 - doing the touristy things...

Sunday, May 3, 2009

The streamyx connection has been extremely trying these few weeks, and I am desperate to finish up my vacation post before I forget it all...

Perhaps it is a little bit unconventional, but when it comes to vacation, I hate to do the touristy stuffs and visit the tourist spots and all... Well, Borobudur was a different story, I went there to take photographs...

Anyway, since Denpasar did not happen because I was too relaxed to catch a bus or something, I figured if I were to continue to go planless, I might waste the whole vacation doing nothing. So I took up the offer from the gang, to come along to sight-see Uluwatu, South of Bali.

Kuta Poppies Lane II on a Sunday morning.

The first stop was to Blue Point, where there serious in-the-business surfer-dudes come to surf in this surfer's haven. I apologize for my lack of adjectives to describe the sceneries, just take a look...

Sabiqa was quite a poser! Heh..

The only reaction I can express when I took in the whole view, was "whoaa..."

Yes, exactly just that, "whoaa..."

After soaking enough of the sun and the sea-breeze, we adjourned to Pura Uluwatu, another tourist hot-spot to watch the sunset. This temple is one of the many places where tourist can interact with the mischievous monkeys infesting the location.

By saying mischievous, I really mean it. There is a sign board outside the temple advising visitors to take off spectacles, hair clips, hats, anything that the monkey can grab on to. Not that the monkeys are dumb in thinking that spectacles are edible, but there seemed to be some conspiracy going on here. The monkeys will first snatch a personal belonging and take it up the roof, or the cliff, then some local kids will be chasing the monkey, offering it some peanuts or something in exchange for what the monkey has snatched. Then when the kids return your stuffs, you're expected to tip them, a few thousands for food or drinks. It's a symbiotic relationship at its best, and you're the loser here, haha.

Malte getting up close and personal with the primates.

"Son, one day, all this will be yours......."

"Okie-dokie, pop, can I take it minus the monkeys?"

The cliffs along which Pura Uluwatu is built.

The magnificent sunset from Uluwatu.

That night we all came back tired, but Malte and I went out hunting for something that is a must-have when one comes to Bali - Babi Guling - or roasted pig. We went all the way along Legian and even reaching the Kuta market, but we went back disappointed. However, Malte made friends with two other German travelers (Florien and another) who were asking for direction. So we directed them to Poppies, and had dinner at the usual nasi goreng place.

Being too spent from the day's trip I didn't take much photos, and the only worth posting up was this obscene wood carving among some bushy decos. Macam toyol, bikin takut juga kan? We called it a day after some Bintangs at the convi store, rested early and I was packed for Ubud the next day.

happy happy happy happy happy birthday Sofie...

Welcome to our geng, baby Sofie!!

And a poem for UncRon and AuntJasmine

Sweet Pink Angel

Congratulations on your new addition;
A baby girl is a treasure rare;
A sweet pink angel, a little doll,
Nothing else can quite compare.

Her smiles and coos will bring you joy;
She'll fill your hearts with love and pleasure;
So cherish these special infant times,
With your little girl, your precious treasure.By Joanna Fuchs

3 little girls more like it!

arteo in bali: day 4 - gettin' a sunburn and a haircut........

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Most of my time in Bali was spent unplanned, and I guess that's the luxury of having 10 days of carefree vacation all to myself... But re-reading the previous line I just wrote, I don't know how true it is... I wake up early most days and was on the internet checking my emails by 8am everyday without fail... But I usually tell people that I was never really on a vacation, I work everyday, for half an hour or 1 hour, then I'm free for the rest of the day. Heh.

The tourist crowd peaked up towards the weekend, so Poppies Lane 2 became quite a dangerous place to walk on with the flooding of westerners bikers from hell, which I suspect only a handful of them actually have valid motorbike license.

Anyway, on the way to the beach I followed a group Balinese priests going along the street, from pura to pura going their devotion and prayers. The Balinese Hinduism is also called the religion of the water (or something like that) because of the importance of Holy Water in their worship.

On the beach again... the mobile vendors carrying goods on their heads. People would always be talking to you along the beach and I've never had a 3 seconds of silence to myself. I mean the whole time, I would always be declining some offers - massage, manicure, ice creams, towels, bangles, tattoos, beers, hand puppets, cigarettes, lighters, sodas, bakso, sarongs... even friggin' bows and arrows and blowpipes!! And I really mean the friggin' whole time I would be saying no to something, and I really felt a cloud of negative energy forming around me from being so negative myself. At first it was a nice-friendly-no-harm-meant kind of decline, but towards the end I inevitably ended up with a shoo-fly-don't-bother-me-why-can't-you-leave-me-alone-for-friggin'-3-seconds type of rejection.

Umbrellas and beach chairs are also a trade commodity on the beach, and walking along the shore you'll be offered incessantly. The trick is to go early and book a spot for the whole day. We got ours for Rp80.000 for the whole day, but Malte and Muro also got their surfboards from the same chap.

Sunny day on a weekend, perfect for lazing around on the beach... but being me, my height of heat tolerance was maxed by 11am, so I went off to do my city-boy's vacation (in an air conditioned place, preferably)... so I walked along Kuta beach, Southwards to Centro. The distance between our shade and Centro is almost like from First Beach, Tg Aru to KKIA airstrip.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do, Ronald McDonald doing the surf.

HardRock Cafe, Kuta, Bali.

Baywatch.

Local kids playing on the beach.

I was spotting this little mischievous squirrel coming to and fro the altar of offerings, sneaking out peanuts, biscuits and maybe candies...

Gotcha!

Another Hindu worshiper.

Boats...

In the making...

Rafts?

The uglier side of Kuta beach....

Centro Shopping Mall

The local version of our ABC is called es teler. Instead of shaved ice, they use crushed ice and has stuffs like avocado and cream of corn in it. I might not have tasted the best, but comparing what I had, I think Malaysian ABC wins.

One thing we don't get in Malaysian KFC - perkedel or potato cakes. Yummy.

All of a sudden I wanted to get myself a haircut, and maybe some linear trimmings on the side, just to kick in the feel of vacation, and the liberty of doing this without concerning about dress ethics and how a Government Officer should present himself. Around the shopping mall, haircuts in saloons cost Rp40.000 to Rp100.000, so advised by a security guard, I went away from the shopping mall into the hidden village to find a haircut as cheap as Rp6.000, no kidding!

The exploration brought me to a Catholic Church - St Francis Xavier Church. It was Saturday evening and I can see people starting to gather in for sunset mass. I was in my bermudas, Bintang singlet and all sweaty. God would understand if I skipped church that time.

Jesus had a kite stuck to his armpit, while StFran looked like he was exorcising the Lord!! HHmmm... blasphemous!

The village road... In search of a cheap barber...

I learn new things everyday... and one for the day - haircut in Indonesian is called PANGKAS RAMBUT. In Malaysian language, we use the word pangkas to mean prune, like pruning a tree branch. Haha.

I finally got my haircut, not the neatest I've had, but for an agreed price of Rp6.000 could I ask for more? But I paid Rp10.000 because he helped me do 2 lines on my right temple right down behind the ear.

Back to the shopping mall, rushing back to the beach bench to watch the sunset.

Love silhouettes.

Macam wajib bah buat begini kalau di pantai, kan?

The Thai tourist who asked us to help them take pictures.

They were a tad late for the sunset, think they missed it.

With Malte.

arteo in bali: day 3 - taking a walk round the corner.....

Friday - May 1, 2009 (Labour Day PH in Malaysia)

As usual, after my morning internet and replying some urgent emails from back home, I was planning for Denpasar today. I haven't read up much on Denpasar, but I figured it should be one of the places to see when one is in Bali.

As I came to the hotel, there was this woman selling jamu siting at the entrance, preparing a drink for one of the hotel workers. I asked for one myself, and from the various tonics she had (which included libido enhancer and yang buat tahan lama) I decided to just have one for kesihatan - or general health. So this is how the process goes...

First she wipes the glass...

Then she pours in the base for the drink - tamarind juice.

Then, in the concoction of roots and whatever not that makes one generally healthy...

She then breaks an egg into the mixture... only the yolk goes in.

And then another egg yolk...

Cleaning the rim of the glass for proper presentation...

And viola I am ready to get my General Health in a cuppa! It didn't taste too bad, but the feeling of sliding 2 egg yolks down my throat as I drink the thing was quite an experience.

After facing the fact that I am not getting my phone back, I asked Ben to freeze my account, and get a change of room. The hotel staffs were friendly and helpful and all, so I didn't feel like changing hotels, so I chose a room right in front of the reception. The fan wasn't the newest one they have. but at least it works.

The beds.

The wash basin.

And thankfully a toilet that doesn't flood after every shower.

Lazing around in the room, I started sketching a figure of Rangda to see if I could get it tattooed on to my arm. I actually did, but I was torn between getting a Rangda or bungai terung on my shoulders. Finally I settled for the bungai terung.

The camera was out of charge so I recharged the batteries while getting my tatts, so I don't have pictures to show the process.

In the afternoon, there was the commotion about someone - a patron of the hotel itself - that was suspected to have stolen all the missing items from our rooms, and since Malte and gang went off to Tanah Lot earlier that day, I was asked to go up and see if I could identify Malte's rashsuit - which I have seen before because I was in the shop when he bought it. It looked very similar but of course I would not say it has to be the one. Furthermore, the suspect was out - and I didn't feel right about going into his room just to look at some of the things on the bed and in his bags, but I took a look at his electronics - and there were way to many of them for one person - looking for my phone, it wasn't there anymore, but maybe he managed to sell it off before we came in. Just maybe.

Having the afternoon spoilt like that, I decided to kill the plan to go to Denpasar and take a walk around Kuta instead. First stop, the Bali Bombing site.

The I proceeded South-ward along Legian Road and started snapping pictures of statues... but in the end I just had to quit snapping every statues I see because there were just too many of them! But one of my favourites, is this Garuda Vishnu.

Now, I am also a fan of everything aerial - commercial airplanes, Superman, angels and I think it it is natural for me to be drawn to the Garuda as well...

Statue next to a tourist information counter.

Oxymoron central - this really kills me!! Haha..

More statues...

Balinese in their natural habitat...

Temples scattered along the street.

I came a cross a group of boys catching a bird and I stayed to watch. After they caught it, they fed it ice cream that they were having...

After that, they ate on the ice cream again... they are so close to nature, you wouldn't believe it. Haha... yucks.

One of the must tries whenever I go away somewhere, is the KFC and Starbucks just to make comparison with the ones we have back home. KFC in Indonesia has a Cafe Corner.

Taste, okay la.. slightly less oily than the Singaporean KFC I had earlier that week.

Then, naturally I would be having some local coffees as well, and I settled at Bali Coffee to escape the heat for a bit...

Picture of olden Balinese cafe.. but you don't see half-dressed women with jugs hanging out anymore nowadays.

Americano and Mocha.

The whole setting wasn't too impressive for an outlet that carries the name of the Island... The set up was not posh, the area too small but I just forgive it for its strong air-conditioning. After that I went to the Shopping Mall in front called Matahari.

Taking a walk to the other side of Kuta called Galleria - a more posh shopping area. Since today was decidedly a Shopping Mall day, I headed there too... only that it wasn't exactly that near, everybody else were asking me to take a taxi when I asked for direction... but no thanks, I'll walk.

A lady with goods carried on her head.

Some walls details.

A man preparing satay by the road side.

The sign a health facility is nearby...

Health Office here is called Dinas Kesihatan. The banner outside its office shows that they're concerned about rabbies infection.

An old man catching fish with a net under the bridge.

A huge statue at a roundabout in front of Galleria.

Coffee at J.Co... Plus point for giving out free donuts with every coffee purchase.

After going around the mall, I decided to watch a movie - just to try out the Indonesian cinema - so I saw P2, a thriller at Cinema 23. After the movie, I had Bakso fried rice for dinner.

A mime doing iPhone promotion.

The Malaysian gang was back from Tanah Lot when I got home... lepak lepak with them, chugging a large Bintang, lay back and relax.... the holiday mood starts to take effect.

arteo goes on air........

It's been a while since I really felt nervous, and today was one such occasion... I went on air to promote our Health Camp through RTM Radio Sandakan FM 90.1... Come to think of it, not that I've not done this before, but somehow, having to talk representing the department and ADR P.183 (Dewan Rakyat) really wrecks my nerve... Luckily the mood of the whole talk show goes along the setting of "bulih bah kalau kau" kind of style... phew....

With Kak Ruby, the DJ on duty... seeing her handle the mics with such ease did little to comfort me... I was quite sure I would stutter or breathe into the mic like a dragon...

With the earphone on...

But hearing myself on air gives a yucky feeling -- I hate my voice -- so I'd be better without...

With Naif, my colleague from my office...

Horsing around after the show was over and the exodus of the butterflies that were in my tummy the whole morning...

perfect photographer award......

Uiseh, kunun. Perfect Photographer... ada quali ka tia' oh?

But it was still a nice warm surprise to get a recognition.

I am guilty of having abandoned my flickr account after upgrading it to -pro- and when I chanced upon it earlier, I had a few mails and a few of my pics have been marked as favourite... terharu juga lah...

Yes, I am determined to upload more often, thanks, my unknown supporters!!

when all plans leaves me still alone........

Oh no, what am I to do with such weekend night when I have to spend it all by myself?

1. Plan A is catching an early flight back to UK
2. Plan B has group outing with CG... reminds me of the old days when I had my own CG too, sigh...
3. Plan C has a date, so dinner is a no-can't-do
4. Plan D is going back to KL for the weekend to close in a gap of long distant relationship
5. Plan E... well Plan E involves drinking, don't know if I want to go that direction yet...
6. Ben is in Membakut with Mom
7. Emme and Sandra is going up to Membakut to see Ben and Mom
8. Dad has to work...
9. I guess I'll just watch movie on my own... again... Monsters vs Aliens maybe?

first times to remember forever........

The last article on Men's Health Malaysia's May 2009 Issue features a list of defining moments we might have forgotten, being jaded, roughened by the cruel reality of Life over the year. I think I remember some of them, but not all too clearly, yet memory lane central nonetheless.....

Realising that your dad is not Superman
Complete with flaws, unfulfilled dreams and worldly wisdom. Your takeaway? Learn from his mistakes, not repeat them.
I am yet to realise that I am not Superman! Anyway, I remember one discussion I had with Dad, that time I was debating why I should not take the offer to UM to do medicine locally (I was midway through my A-levels that might send me abroad - the dream of any young Sabahan chaps tired of small town life) but Dad told me about his dream of sending us to local Universities (Dad's generation still taken into yonder-days prestigious names like UM), I followed and as a blessing in disguise, the economy crashed that year (1997) many students abroad got sent back while I secured a place in an institution that makes me who I am today. Dad still ain't Superman, but Superman doesn't know how to be a dad!

Going to a football game
That magical moment when you climbed the stones steps and caught sight of that wonderful amphitheatre for the first time. It was so big. It still makes your heart skip a beat.
The first time I went for a live football match was during SUKMA while I was still studying, and that time I went to Shah Alam Stadium with Soon Hock to watch the final match of Malaysia vs Thai, where Malaysia lost by a self-goal. Embarrassing, but I remembered the human wave best!! I'd go again just to do the human waves!

Casting your first vote
You'll never have a sense of being empowered like you did during your virgin visit to the polling station, even if it is a school. Mainly because by the time the following election came around, you'd realised they're all as bad as each other and may have never voted again.
My first time casting a vote was for the General Election-12. It was fun, that's all I remembered. A tad bit disorientating, but fun nonetheless.

Finishing a difficult novel
A real sense of achievement comes from having read and understood a work of literature. The fact that it proved to be the only 'difficult' novel you've read isn't really important.
I have read a few difficult novels, mind you... But one that gave a a great sense of achievement was being able to do Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder in only 5 days, the week prior to a final exam during Klang Hospital attachment.

Negotiating a pay rise
All you need was to ask, stating your case clearly and calmly. And had the good sense to know the limit you could push.
I guess being a humble government servant I would not have the liberty to negotiate my pay rise, we all depend on Cuepecs to do it. But I remember my first paying job as a floor staff at MPH Midvalley, but I kinda screwed up when the management saw my staff-purchase went up to over RM1k in just 3 weeks - that's waaay too much for a part-timer's purchase. The boss had to call me in to the room, I owned up to having used my staff benefit to buy stuffs for my friends, he forgave my naivety, gave me a chance but I resigned the next day, hah. Anyway, for all its worth, it was great being a walking discount voucher, even for just 3 weeks!

Hosting a dinner party
You arranged the knives in the correct order, topped up every one's drinks and you didn't doze off when the plus one from hell started talking about Gossip Girls. You're officially civilised.
Organising a dinner wasn't that hard when all I needed to do was to get the raw materials and my nurses did all the cooking, arranging and cleaning up after that.

Realising it's more than friends
Your pals teased you incessantly and you played along with the long phone calls and the longer IM-ing. Then it hit you that you meant more to you than going to the mamak stalls with your friends.
Huh? I don't understand the statement but I think I can guess from the title. The first time I felt it was more than friends was when she took so much care to nurse my bleeding fingers (for goodness' sake it was just a bloody paper cut, literally) but I felt really good about it ;-P

Opening your first pay-slip
Chances are you wasted every cent of that glorious payslip on a pair of shoes or that worthless piercing - and the fact that you could do that was exactly the point.
My first pay check... let's see when was that... ah, August 2003. I think my first splurge was on a Canon Supershot A400 camera, and I never regretted that purchase - some of my best photos were taken with that ol' junk.

At the driver's seat
You never felt more powerful, more in charge of your destiny or where you wanted to go - even if its just to the 7 Eleven down the road.
My first farthest drive before getting a license was with Henry going to Southern Park to get a haircut. It was the champion car ESA6588 - the training ground to all my siblings - and that time I was going on 20km/hour and I can sense the cars behind me were getting annoyed - but suck it up, I am still in front and this is MY WHEEL!! Woohoo!! I passed my driving test the afternoon of the same day I left KK to study in KL, so I never touched the wheel again until about a year later when I came back for holidays.

Patted on the back
You've worked so hard that you've forgotten about the rewards. So when the boss visited your cubicle and flashed you that rare smile of approval, you realised that there was more to the job than getting paid.
My boss is the forever smiling type and always dishing out encouraging words so I don't have a problem with rare smiles... (thanks a zillion DrYusof) but I remember the first tangible pat I received from my job was on this lowly programme I got involved in setting up while I was still in Tungku, Lahad Datu. When Dato'DrNarimah, the Head of Family Health Division of KKM came to my humble clinic, I had to show her some slides of the activities that we carried out. After the whole presentation, she asked to flash back to the few slides on Father Friendly Workshop - those 2 slides I inserted just for completion's sake. But Dato' has different take on it, she was impressed with the simple work and granted me a slot, there and then, to present the activity as a free paper during the National Technical Meeting for Family Health, Ministry of Health in Sunway! Till today, whenever I think back of that moment, I go "Wow..."

Getting dumped
Or rejected. You couldn't articulate the sensation you felt deep inside at the time. You just wanted it to go away. It took you a few more exposures before you realised that the gnawing feeling was called heartbreak.
Yep, I remember the first. 1997. It was like being asked to down a bottle of vinegar while watching Titanic over and over again. The whole thing felt terribly long, painful and leaves an aftertaste in the mouth that makes you nauseous. Exactly that.

Saying no
And meant it. Whether it was drinking or plainly just doing something bad. Remember how good it felt to walk away?
Saying no to other people wasn't half as hard as saying no to myself. I can't remember the first but I remember the last - I was fighting the temptation to buy another leather bag on discount at MetroJaya MidValley. It was on about 70% off, and it would definitely add an air of sophistication to my not so sophisticated outlook. But I figured I don't need another bag at that time and walked away. It wasn't a good feeling, I still dream about the richness of texture of the leather and how good it smelled and how handsome the bag looks, but deep down inside I am glad I didn't get it, a small victory but a victory nonetheless.

Getting tested
Your first blood work, whether it was brought on because you had a STD scare or a new job, you've never felt so nervous waiting for the results.
I am never anxious going for a test or exam, but I will have a near mental breakdown waiting for the result. Once I didn't go and see my result of my exams, even after 3 days being displayed on the Faculty's notice board. Our marks were shown against our matrix number so people couldn't come and tell me my result. When I finally went there to see, it was at night, and my knees were wobbly and I almost pissed in my pants in excitement and relief to know I passed. 3 days!! 3 long and excruciating days!!

Hitting the sweet spot
We're talking about sports like golf, badminton or tennis here, and not anything you might get up in the bedroom. Although it doesn't mean it doesn't apply as well.
Okay, if it's about sports, I may not have much experiences to remember. But I remember how good it felt to finally know how to swim after practicing at Klang Sports Complex - and after reading the theory on swimming from 3 book I borrowed from the library. Pelik tetapi benar!

the minister's visit........

As if today's tender meeting wasn't stressful enough, half way through it I received another sms from my Boss asking that all the AMOHs were to stay back for a meeting with the Director tonight at 8pm and we're expected to be there when the Dear Mister Minister Sir of Health Ministry - Dtk Liow Tiong Lai comes for a visit at Queen Elizabeth Hospital tomorrow morning.

That means I had to cancel the committee meeting in Beluran, change my flight ticket at the very last minute and rush to a few places in a very short allocation of time... but, hey, work is work.

The meeting tonight lasted till 1130pm and I was supposed to be watching Monsters VS Aliens at 1Borneo with my staffs at 1120pm.... and again, well, who says that government servants are allowed to have fun... any fun!!??! Right?

what's in there?............

In the short span of 24 hours before the opening of our Quotation Box for the current project tenders, I have been visited, or rather cornered, by at least half a dozen contractors, up to about 9pm yesterday and another one today. Within that time also I have been handed over 2 envelopes which I declined, not checking what were inside them.

The whole incident with the envelopes really makes me anxious, I've just started my career here, I don't want to spoil it with 'incentives' like these... really scary.

Quotation submissions will be opened and discussed in the meeting as scheduled this afternoon, hopefully none of my committee members came in with a pocket slightly full..