One of Those Days...

Rusty relaxing after MRDO 2008

It's just one of those dog-gone days where you wish you could just lie in bed the entire day...

Yes, I'm demotivated again after going through a stack of documents and application screen shots which the client insists that we change. The client is expecting that the change be done FOC (Free of Charge).

Tough shit!!!! (~___~)

This is because the changes requested are not that simple. It's not a question of changing a text label here or move a field there, it's adding/removing functionality, putting up a listing of data where you cannot manage the actual data itself (think of it as "ghost view") and stuff like logic change.

The biggest ick factor of this project I'm working on right now is the fact that the "common" application had undergone some major changes and they FAILED to inform us about the change.

So, when it came time for UAT (User Acceptance Testing), of course the test(s) failed.

We had asked previously about any documentation or contact to liaise with in regards to their "common" application but we were greeted with blank stares or just "no, no, no, no..."

My question is, if you do not share information or knowledge; how will the other party know what is right or wrong?

I am not God. Though, at times I wished I could be. (^___^)

*sigh*... It's only Tuesday??? @#$@#!!@##!#!@#

Feel Good Friday - Loco Roco 2!!!

One of my favourite PSP games will be released soon!! Loco Roco 2!!!

The game is addictive and is quite innovative as you move the "blob" using the L1 and L2 controls on the PSP.

I played this game non-stop for a few days just to get through the levels to see the end. The music was great too. It reminded me of another few great games from Namco - Katamari series (Katamari Damacy, We love Katamari, Me and My Katamari).

So, I'm patiently waiting for this game to be announced... (^__________^)

Have a great weekend folks!

How Many Times You Pee/Poo Per Day?

This piece of news is just a "flush of genius"... - ‘Pay for water waste’ plan on the cards (The Star)

Yes, we have to pay for our water here. It is a shock to some folks from other countries that we have to pay for clean water while some countries are getting it for free, i.e. treated and clean. While, over here, we have to pay for our own water to be treated AND yet it is still not clean enough to be drunk straight from the tap.

Now, we have to watch what we eat/drink because, we will need to pay each time we pay homage to our Royal Throne at home or work or play.

Energy, Water and Commu­nications Minister Datuk Shaz­iman Abu Mansor said that his ministry was at the early stages of looking into a “Green Tariff” which would require consumers to pay for wastage they incur.

“The Green Tariff is a volumetric-based tariff that combines the tariff for water and waste water into a single holistic tariff.

“Whatever water is used, it almost entirely ends up as waste as well. It’s still at a very early stage. We are still studying the issue,” he told the press after launching the Fifth National Utilities Summit here yesterday.

Gawsh, first of all, I'm wondering how much will it cost me, the poor taxpayer how much $$ it will take for the ministry to conduct the study. Second of all, when will this be implemented? I need to know so that I can also plan my exit.

“We are looking to see what would be a fair way of charging consumers, meaning you pay for what you use.

“It will not be a flat rate system,” he said.

OMG!! That means that if my entire family has diarrhea a particular week and assuming that we have to visit the bathroom > 10 times per pax.... I will be screwed for that month's bill...

BTW, aren't we all paying $$$ to Indah Water already? Why another tariff?

I have a strange feeling that some genius out there will start another "night service" like those in the good 'ol days of people collecting your waste at night. So, you might hear lorries with people yelling "URINE LAMA, KENCING LAMA.."

LOL!!! Gosh, I usually write nonsense stuff on Fridays... I'm two days early. ;-)

Crappy Shots from a DSLR Newbie

I finally took the plunge... Went Canon instead of Nikon. *MUAHAHAAHHA*

Noooo.. You didn't??

Well, it made sense 'coz most of the "sifus" (experts) in the office were Canon DSLR users. So, that means learning about the camera and trying out equipment so much easier. Sometimes, it is hard to be that lone voice in the wilderness.

So, am I saying goodbye to my 'ol Reliable? HELL NO!! It's a great camera and although the MPs were not high, it had a lot of features I could play with which is important in my DSLR adventures ahead.

Anyway, here are some shots. I've saved the EXIF info as well. After so many years of editing my shots, I realized that the EXIF* data was loss!!

*EXIF - EXchangeable Image Format

Tried to get as close as possible without being stung...

For now, I'm trying to learn to play around with the different settings and my garden is my photo "studio" for now. Of course, I have 2 willing camwhore victims to play as LIVE subjects too. But, it's hard telling two Jack Russells to sit still while I fiddle with my settings.

I'm learning to compose my pictures as well. This is a skill which needs to be honed. It helps to have some inspiration and drooling over looking at other brilliant photographers' works is making me "work" harder at my skills.

I've decided to learn a little bit on *HDR techniques to my photos too. Somehow, the slippers here look a bit eerie after I've darken some tones. Yep, these days, besides being able to take a good photo, you need to know some post-processing techniques as well.

*HDR - High Dynamic Range

Anyway, will be posting some other photos up whenever I have the time. ;-)

Oh Mamma Mia!!!!

=====Dedicated to all readers who were alive during the 70's... Oh Gawd... I'm such an old fart!!!=====

Mention the name "ABBA" to any adult aged late 20-something and above and you'll get a reaction of sorts. Either they start jiving to "Dancing Queen"; burst into song, singing "Thank You For the Music" or just shake their head to think that they lived through the Disco age somehow. Perhaps for some of us, we couldn't believe that we have been wowed by these people who wore clothes with so much sequins that it literally blinded us.. back then.

I FINALLY caught Mamma Mia! yesterday with my parents who are big ABBA fans. We never went on a road trip without our ABBA tapes. My sister and I would try to sing to "Honey, Honey" or "I Have A Dream". Yes, ABBA was drummed into us at an early age.

The movie was fantastic! It was what I really needed to feel happy after going through such a crappy week. Nothing is more uplifting than jiving to the song of "Dancing Queen" - a song about having the "time of your life". The last ABBA-related movie I watched was Muriel's Wedding and that was a pretty good movie with some ABBA songs in it.

Sure, some of us would like to make fun of ABBA music but deep down, I'm sure some of us can't help tapping our feet to the music or humming their songs. In fact, the Swedes have this joke about their country's biggest exports were Volvos, IKEA and ABBA... (^___^)

The best part I liked about ABBA's music was that their lyrics were simple, and so easy to sing to. They had a variety in their music too, where they didn't just stick to a particular tempo. Perhaps that was what is so appealing about them.

Anyway, for an inspiring song, try "I Have A Dream"... Listen to the lyrics carefully.

Now, I can't wait for the musical to come down to KL!!!

And yes... I have a feeling that I'll be singing more ABBA songs at the Christmas Karaoke this year... LOL!!!

Fish Food... Comfort Food...

The Raya break is coming to an end... *sigh*

wished that I could have taken a longer break to recuperate back home. I'm wondering if I should take advantage of the next holiday towards the end of this month to take a long break.

Anyway, it has been 3 months since I last fed the fishes and this time, EV decided that she was brave enough to go try the Fish Spa treatment... Provided, I would be there to help distribute the "feed".

EV found a nice fish spa called Garrafura Fish Spa in Bangsar @ Jalan Telawi, just next to the Al-Radjh Bank. She read about it in the papers and told me that the fish there were slightly different from the ones at Kenko Fish Spa. Hmmmm...

Well, since we had the time and wanted to try something different than hang out at the shopping mall; we went to Bangsar. Besides, I DID promise her that I would go try out the fish spa some moons back. I happened to break my promise when I joined a group of colleagues after a farewell gathering at Pavillion.

I brought my camera along to document the expression on EV's face the moment when she feels the first bite... **MUAHAHAHAHAA**

Our feet after EV has gotten used to the ticklish nibbling of the fish

To my surprise, EV felt right at home here!! She did not squirm or tried to kill me when more fish started to nibble at her feet. Then... I remembered, EV is quite immune to tickles... *sigh*

The fish here are a bit more gentle since it was the smaller variety and although a lot of fish were at my feet, it felt pretty relaxing. It kind of reminds me of having a foot massage with tiny massagers all around my feet. The difference is that fish are eating your dead skin cells.

There are two ponds at this place and I suspected that the smaller pond had a different species or larger fish.

Lovely deco..

Wash your feet before and after the spa treatment!

The deco here is soothing and the spa played some relaxing oldies from The Carpenters. I found myself humming or singing to the song "Top of the World" to keep myself from giggling too much.

My last blog entry didn't have a good shot of the fish as I went to the spa at night. This time round, I managed to get a good close-up of the tiny workers who were so busy at my feet!

Whoa, now that is a big fish!

The fishes are getting very personal with me...

After a while, EV was curious with the fishes at the other pond. I suggested to her that if she wants to have a more intense sensation, she should try the other pond.

EV videos the fishes in action

She was quite scared at first because the fishes at the other pond were bigger!! The nibbling sensation was stronger as bigger fish had bigger teeth after all.

I couldn't see the fish very well as the pool used darker stones but I noticed that the fish were dark brown/green - indicating a different variety? For my second time, this experience was certainly a tame one. I think I might want to try Kenko again just so that I can try the bigger fish there! :-)

We used up our 30 minutes and I asked EV how she felt. She said, "It's normal-la!". I asked her if she felt that her feet was lighter or smoother or whiter... She said she felt it was normal. Later that night, I got an SMS from her that she felt that the skin on her feet was really smooth and soft! Wow, so our RM38 was really worth it after all!

We walked back to Bangsar Village to see if there was any place to have some tid bits when EV noticed signs about the newly opened Theobroma Chocolate Lounge. Being a confirmed chocoholic, she said she must try the chocs there.

I ordered an ice-blended drink - Snow White Frappe while EV had some tea. Since she was hungry, she had a quiche first.

The frappe had a very strong milk taste and was not all too creamy. It did have a hint of white chocolate which I love and the dark chocolate shavings balanced out the sweetness of the drink.

For dessert, EV ordered the Ice Cream Crepe with Caramel and it looked amazing!

Reminds me of a Paper Thosai

Oozing Milk chocolate sauce... Slurp!!

I was glad that we didn't order the fondue or Mud Pie as the crepe was quite large. Within the crepe, there were chopped nuts and sultanas. Quite a nice treat but when you're at the Chocolate lounge, shouldn't we go for dessert with more chocolate?

I think I will be returning to the Lounge soon with some other chocoholics.

Sigh.. When is the next long weekend again?

What I Did During Raya - KL Bird Park

I had too many photos to show in my last blog that I had to break it up into two posts.

After spending a few hours at the Butterfly park, we headed down to the Bird Park. We were shocked to find a lot of people were visiting the place. Then again, it's the school holidays as well. So, many families were making a day trip with their kids there.

We purchased our tickets for RM15 per pax. For foreign visitors, the ticket costs RM39 for adults. It's not a bad deal considering that the park was rather huge. We hoped that the price of the tickets were worth it...

As soon as we passed the entrance, a peacock somehow had flown up on to the canopy and decided to spread its feathers. This is a sight to behold! Of course, the next thing which occurred to me was, could I manage to avoid its poop... Hmmmm...

The park had an artificial waterfall and from the looks of it, was very well maintained. It seems that the artificial waterfall was just newly constructed.

Dude, I told you that you needed deodorant...

Although the park is a walk-in aviary, there were some cages to house other birds which were rare. Some of these birds took advantage of the tall cages to make some sort of a nesting ground. Now, birds of a feather, DO flock together.

Monkeys!!! Yes, Yes... They are relatives to certain high ranking officials... (^_^)

Another surprise in the park were monkeys. There was a troop of monkeys looking for food in the park. Monkeys love fruits and there are plenty of feeding stations around the park for the monkeys to "steal" food from. When we drove around Bukit Aman, we spotted a section near the Tun Abdul Razak Memorial which had fruits and nuts placed there for the monkeys living around the hill.

There were plenty of peacocks around. I wasn't lucky enough to catch them spreading their tail feathers but they were making a loud crowing noise to indicate their locations. Yes, when the birds are up in the trees, I tend to look up to avoid... the "surprise"...

Chick: Ma, why we walk like that? Mother: So that the human can take a cute photo of us-loh!

This picture of a pea hen and its chick is quite cute. It's as though the pea hen and chick were walking towards somewhere.

Contrary to what everybody thinks.. Flamingos are actually white in colour. The reason why some flamingos turn pink is due to the food it takes. The flamingos doesn't fly around the park. They mainly stick around this pond.

We finally found the Rhinoceros Hornbill, which happens to be the mascot for the park as well as being Sarawak's state bird. This bird was found in another part of the park - where the exotic and endangered birds are kept. EV was quite excited to see this bird since she's from Sarawak and is very proud of this bird.

Sadly, these birds are also endangered in the wild - due to loss of its natural habitat.

EV and I stayed on to watch the Bird Show and was very impressed with the way the birds were trained to perform tricks.

I was quite surprised with the cleanliness of the park. You won't find a lot of bird droppings left unattended and the grounds were kept quite clean from the mess. The only part which I didn't like about the park was the area where the monkeys were. The monkeys have left their excrement in certain places after stealing the birds' food and somehow, that portion of the park wasn't well maintained.

It is worthwhile to visit this park as it offers a unique experience of being around nature in a closed setting. While at the park, you feel as though you're in a different part of the city, despite the park being located near one of the busiest part of KL.

What I Did During Raya - KL Butterfly Park

It has been a long time since we had some holidays and so, I took the opportunity to go to some of the sights around KL. Actually, I was cajoled by EV as she complained that she was bored with the usual activities of going to shopping malls or just jalan-jalan to cari makan.

I decided to bring her to the sights around the National Mosque or Bukit Aman to visit the Butterfly and Bird Parks. She didn't know the area and so, I asked her to drive. Hehehe...

Anyway, going to the parks would give me an opportunity to practice my photography skills. I wished I got the DSLR first but then, skills are more important. Without the skills, any photos taken even with the best camera can turn out to be crap.

EV needed to be fed and so, on such a rare occassion where she didn't needed to feast on blood, we went to the local Mackers (McDonald's) for some brekky...

I like to sprinkle lots of pepper on my eggs. No salt, it is salty enough.

Mackers didn't have any strawberry jam but they had grape jelly; which tasted sweet with a hint of artificial grape flavouring... Might as well have used sugar on those muffins.

We made our way to KL and EV realized that the park was quite near her office! When we got down, I decided to test my camera settings first since the sky is a bit overcast with enough sunlight that morning.

The view of the city from Bukit Aman. You can see two landmarks - KL Tower and KLCC. Hidden behind the tree is the large flagpole at Merdeka Square.

As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, 4 other cars loaded with passengers went to visit the park as well. It was the school holidays and so, many families brought their kids to visit these places.

I started snapping away as soon as I got there. I've decided to post the following photos which I deemed were the best of the lot.

Paku Pakis Unfurls

Hanging orchids - I had to wait until the wind died down so that I can take this shot of the orchids hanging from an arch.

This was my second dragonfly shot for the day. The first one was quite blurry. EV was trying to hurry me to take a look at some yellow-coloured butterfly. I'm glad I ignored her.

I also managed to take a few good butterfly shots too. Of course, it would have been better if I had a DSLR with zoom lens but my little compact camera did well too.

We spent a long time at the park as I wanted to take some photos with varying degrees of light. I converted this photo using some photo-editing software. It's quite hard to find a good black and white shot while at the park.

The park costs RM8 per entry for Malaysians with an additional RM1 for your camera. I found it weird that the park should charge people for bringing their camera. Hmmmm.. Probably a policy they had since it first opened.

Needless to say, it was a good learning experience. I didn't manage to learn a single butterfly name but I learned to take some good shots. :-)

Weekend Makan-Makan

I spent last Saturday going around town trying to find some stuff to eat. I've not participated in such an activity for a very long time now. (^__^)

After trying to look for the Little Dim Sum Place around Sri Hartamas (apparently it has closed down or moved out), I ended up at Jarrod and Rawlins for a very late lunch, i.e. 3pm.

I fooled around with EV's mobile phone camera since it was one of those Cybershot ones. She didn't quite understand how to take macro shots and so, I decided to give her a few pointers.

I like this photo because of the sugar packets had that unique design. Kind of reminds me of the Wonder Bread plastic bag design... All retro-like.

I was captivated with the different kinds of wine served at the restaurant. It kind of reminded me to also check my home's stockpile. Hmmmm... Well, Christmas is about 2 months away...

Due to my diet, I've basically sworn off coffee and because I was still quite sleepy, and so decided to order a latte. This cuppa really had the balance of milk and coffee - just the way I like it. :-)

When it came to food, I couldn't decide if I wanted bangers (sausages) or a sandwich. In the end, I opted for the Black Pepper Steak pie which came with some mash (mashed potatoes) and some condiments - Brown Gravy with Onion and Yellow Mustard.

Not to worry, EV balanced out the meal by ordering an Avocado Mango Salad. The picture was too blurry to post since I was using my PDA phone camera.

Now, after all that food, we just had to walk it off. We walked a bit around Sri Hartamas and noticed that quite a lot of Korean restaurants have moved in the neighbourhood. Well, it has been nearly 4 years since I last worked there. Anyway, I'm curious about some of the Korean restaurants there and would certainly return there to try it out next time.

EV said that she needed to get some stuff from IKEA and off we went to The Curve/Ikano. I was a bit apprehensive as it was the weekend before Raya and so, we'll definitely meet a lot of shoppers there. We did our shopping - me, buying stuff for the dogs and she, buying stuff for her Dad's condos.

I even managed to sneak a peek at my prospective camera - Canon 450D... I drooled all over it. (So much so that when I returned to the shop yesterday, the salesman remembered me....)

After all that walking around; we decided to give the new US franchise Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. Since it was still Ramadhan, we had to wait - for about 1 hour!!! We were both not hungry and decided to hang out at The Curve while waiting for the call from the restaurant. In case you can't recall, this restaurant is setup after the movie Forrest Gump which won some Academy Awards way back in the mid 90's...

This restaurant has a unique way to get the attention of the waiters. Here is how it goes...

There are two "license" plates placed on the table where, one is Blue with the words "Run Forrest Run"...

This license plates indicates that you still require service from the waiters, who will pop by to ask if you require anything - food, drink, napkin... Forrest Gump related trivia...

And, the second plate, is Red in colour with the words "Stop Forrest Stop"...

This license plate indicates to the waiter that you wish to stop eating/drinking and would like to get the bill.

Certainly quite unique and we both tried it. It was a busy night and the room was dark; hence the waiter didn't quite notice when we put up the "Stop" sign...

What did we order? Since we were both full, we decided to go for an appetizer and salad... (Yes, I'm trying to eat healthy... sheesh!!)

Tossed Chicken Cobb - RM 24.90

The salad was pretty ok, though both EV and I would have loved to eat more avocado... The vinaigrette dressing was quite sharp and tangy - perfect with the creamy avocado.

Cajun Shrimp - RM20.90

The cajun shrimp came in a dish with cajun spices in melted butter. This tended to be a quite salty dish because of the butter and spices. The lemon does cut the salt and it went well with the garlic bread. Though, I thought the garlic bread should have had more garlic on it.

The portions served at Bubba Gump is quite large and can be shared with a few folks. There are quite a number of good deals to be shared such as Shrimpers Heaven, where the shrimp served are cooked in a variety of ways - deep fried, deep fried in tempura batter or coconut...

For those who love shrimp or prawns as we call it here in Malaysia, go ahead and try out Bubba Gump; no matter how "franchisy" this restaurant is.

*Whew*!!!! After all that eating, I certainly feel guilty and would be hitting the gym after I've rested my sore knee. I'd guess the key to all this is to eat in moderation and certainly, quantity sometimes does not equal quality. ;-)

Dogs And Grass

Not really in the mood to write anything longish in my blog today.

Just a picture of my dogs enjoying their time in the sun.

My dogs sure know how to enjoy themselves.

Take time out to enjoy the sun during the short break folks!!

To all Muslims - SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDILFITRI!!!!!! To the rest, HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Losing My Mojo....

Hmmm.. What do you do, when you feel that you're losing your "mojo"?

Be it something that you do at work or just a feeling that you're not achieving your very best; what do you do to get back on the horse and get it back? ;-)

Worse still... What happens if someone keeps criticizing you despite your very best? :-(

Gosh... I wish that getting my "mojo" back is as easy as how Austin Powers got his back. (^___^)

I try not to be too serious with myself. I'm sure that it'll come back. I just got to figure out how...

Boom De Ah Dahh!!!! - The World Is Awesome!

Desipte all the crap going around... The world is a pretty awesome place...



Stay happy, ok?

By the way, those of you folks who have subscribed to Discovery Channel on Astro, you might see this ad going around. The song is pretty catchy and you can even download the MP3 here.

Happy Mid-Autumn (Mooncake) Festival

This year, the mid-autumn or mooncake festival will fall on a Sunday. A perfect chance for people to go home to their hometowns to celebrate the festival with their families.

This probably explains why the city looked quiet today. Besides that, last week, there was a rush for mooncakes and etc.

I was supposed to blog about some photos this week but work caught up with me again. GRRRRRR...

Last Sunday, EV and I were on the food hunt - looking for an Elephant, but ended up in the Food Foundry. (^ ^)

Had a late lunch and decided to indulge on some dessert - mille crêpe, to be exact.

Wished sometimes that things were as clear as "chocolate" and "white"...

I ordered a vanilla flavoured mille crêpe, while EV, being a big fan of chocolate, went for her favourite flavour.

Mille crêpe up close... Look at all that cream and crêpe layers!!!

What is a mille crêpe ? It's just a French cake made up of many layers of crêpe. Unlike the Indonesian layer cake - which is layers of baked cake, this mille crêpe is a pastry which is made up of many layers of thin crêpe sandwiched with flavoured cream. Yummmm... Best to finish this when it's nice and cold.

These dragons don't breathe fire...

EV and I ended up at The Curve. The place was decorated for both the Mid-Autumn and Ramadhan festivities. I espied my chinese zodiac "floating" around... These paper lanterns are quite hard to find these days. More so when people prefer the plastic battery-operated lanterns which also plays some irritating music.

I miss the simple days when my Kong-Kong will buy for my sis and I, goldfish paper lanterns. He would proclaim that he made it for us. Guilible kids that we were, we were amazed with our grandfather. After all, he used to make paper toys for us from gold paper found in cigarette boxes.

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!!

Enjoy those mooncakes but don't take too much of it as you'll know those cakes will go straight to your bum!!!!

What Makes You Happy?

I've been going through a few blogs here and there and found that people are either very stressed out, suffering from anxiety attacks or just depressed.

Hmmmm... Times are getting tough but I know we'll pull through if we keep our chin up. (^ ^)

At the end of a very long working day (I know, some people work > 12 hours per day and yet, go home and take care of the family), what makes you happy?

What brings a smile to your face the very moment you step into your house?

A yummy meal? (Of course, this picture I took of the "Dragon Roll" from Sushi Zanmai.. Slurrrppp)

Your fur "kids"... or pets - who always give unconditional love.... AWWWW... this picture really melts my heart...

Your supportive family. Folks whom you can spend time to talk to about problems, hopes and dreams.

Of course, ultimately in the end, the secret to happiness is yourself. If you have everything that lie can offer - good looks, $$$, great job and loving partner/family but still feel unhappy; then, you may have to examine yourself to see why you are unhappy.

Like I mentioned in one of my old posts, happiness is about how well-adjusted you are. Of course, everyone has problems and wish that they can run away from it. But the truth of the matter is that, we can't run away from our problems forever.

Problems will always be there and we have to face them - no matter how much we hate it. I'd guess, let's not sweat the small stuff and learn to be content with whatever we have?

Anyway, I'm facing a lot of issues now at work but when I go home, I leave it behind. It's the only way I can keep sane.

To everyone out there.... Hope that you can find a bit of happiness somewhere....

Anger Management and Merdeka Wishes

From my last post, you may think that I was really taking it too far.

Yeah, I nearly lost my head because I was stressed out over some massive jam. The truth of the matter was that I've been stressed out for a very long time now.

Ever since an announcement from the HQ that each profit center was to hit 80% utilization, I have been stressed out every week to try to hit those numbers. Sure, revenue collection is not part of my KPI (Key Performance Indicator) but cost recovery from utilization rate of each member in the team; including myself.

I know that I shouldn't let stuff like this get to me, but the pressure is just getting too much. Every week, we're been asked by the boss - "Do you know what happened last week?", i.e. do you know why your numbers are so fxxked up last week? Sometimes, out of anger, I would like to answer back - "Sure, YOU fxxked up the numbers because YOU didn't bring in the sales!". However, I keep this all repressed inside, waiting for the moment when I'm excused from the meeting.

I'm a technical team lead - which means, I lead my team in technical aspects of a project. Somehow, the term is being abused by management because we have the responsibilities as a manager but yet - not really having the title. In fact, I feel like a pseudo-manager all the time now.

Anyway, enough of that.

I had a small revelation while at church yesterday. It happened when I was listening to the church's 50th Golden Jubilee song. A sort of calm and peace came over me as I concentrated on the lyrics of the song. That the greatest celebration was The Word - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1)

It was as though I had been touched by God's finger, i.e. like being poked (not Superpoked! like in Facebook), nudged to return my focus to Him. Sure, the world could be really screwed up at times and it can take it's toll on us; but there is so much more to life, than just work.

With that, I have a renewed sense of self this Merdeka. Yep, that means I've got to take whole of my anger and turn it inside out. Laugh a bit more, learn to breathe more deeply - to calm the mind and also to eat right!!

I'm getting the exercise thing down - by trying to hit the gym at least twice a week - up to 2 hours per session; but food is my biggest downfall and brick wall. Well, right now I'm having my low-fat yogurt and apple and I am resolved to get the food part of my diet right. It's so hard when Malaysian food is soooo delicious and you need a lot of will power to resist the lovely char koay teow or that fatty piece of bak kut in the bak kut teh.

However, thinking of all the saturated oils just gives me the heebie jeebies now. Yeck!!

Snoopy celebrated her 5th birthday yesterday as well as our nation celebrated 51 years of independence. Both numbers are significant although one is larger than the other.

Just like Snoopy wishes for good things to come to her, I also wish for great things to come to our nation. Despite all the things which are happening now, we all wish and strive to make Malaysia the best she can be.

I pray that our leaders will wake up and remember that the job they took was provided by the rakyat. So, the rakyat is the boss.

I pray that our leaders will be granted the wisdom to lead the people and not lead their pockets.

I pray for continued peace amongst everyone.

I pray for the people of Sichuan, China who suffered another earthquake on Aug 31st.

That is my Merdeka wish. Happy Merdeka everyone!