Simple..MemorieS

Christmas Outing

2011-12-26T21:35:00.004+11:00

Its Christmas. Though it does not snow and we do not really exchange presents, I got some in the form of insects. :)

It's been quite some time and I finally got some shots that I like.

Places are getting limited for me to shoot though. I always frequent the same few places and therefore getting the same few insects that inhabit that area.

Been looking to find new hunting grounds and though found a few, they are to me, too dangerous to go alone and me, I shoot alone so, its out of the question. Safety first....

Here are my haul for Christmas 2011...

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Singapore Trip

2011-12-06T16:13:00.007+11:00

It was a long awaited holiday or getaway for us both together. Although it is not really a holiday as we were there for Fiona's wedding but then, we still had a good 2 days to walk around.

Coincidentally, it is also near the time of the year where Yuki and I like best. CHRISTMAS!

I remember we were there in Singapore 2 years ago, during Christmas time as well and the decorations along Orchard Road was fantastic. This year was quite normal, maybe because it was still too early for a full on decoration. It was still November when we were there this year.

There was nothing out of the ordinary, Christmas trees around the place, cool ones that is, none like those we see in KL. At least we now know which government is working harder to bring in tourists.

Then, we noticed something. Orchard Road has been invaded. Not by aliens but by colourful ELEPHANTS. Hahaha... it's damn cute... they were having the Elephant Parade and almost all shopping malls participated in this event where they have all the colourful elephants all around the mall. How cool is that? Nothing like this can be done in Malaysia or has not been done in Malaysia.

The Durian Elephant
The Free Spirit Elephant
The Naughty and The Elephant. (Naughty is the girl on the Elephant's right front leg)
The Cave Art Elephant
The Zelda Zeliphant
This is my favourite... and it has a cool name... The Hellaphunt
The I See Everything Elephant
The Jigsaw Elephant with The I See Everything Elephant
Other than that, we also saw some interesting things. Like this lil banner from MOS Burger.
And this very catchy name for a boutique. Welcome To Fourskin
The night was spent in Chinatown. Ate some pretty good Hainan Chicken Rice with Oyster Cake and then walked around to discover and explore.
A very cool temple.
OOo... we also spotted Po Zhi Lum... where is Wong Fei Hung and Nga Chat Sou...
This is pretty cool as well. Surnames on all the chopsticks... find mine... :)

So ngam I changed to Samsung Galaxy S2 a day before I went to Singapore and then, wohoo... Androids Love Singapore.
Fiona's wedding was held at the White Rabbit in Demsey but unfortunately I did not bring my camera there. It's a very nice western restaurant, renovated from a Church but with the architectural designs all still intact. Really nice place for a romantic lil dinner with a loved one.

So, finally we head back home after a 3D2N trip to Singapore. Hahaha... The Singaporean government is really IN leh... they are also into Angry Birds at the airport... Malaysia where got ler... no fun at all de...

Sunday Hunt

2011-10-25T14:30:00.005+11:00

Think I haven't been out hunting for bugs for a very long time.

Finally had the time last Sunday to take 2 hours of my time to do what I enjoy :)

This time round, there is some changes to my initial setup.

As usual, I used Nikon D7000, Nikon SB600 flash and Tamron SP90.

However, I ditched my new DIY diffuser and reverted back to the old one as the new diffuser still needs loads of work to get evenly soft light.

Also, added a battery grip to the camera and surprisingly enough, the added weight actually made pictures easier to capture handheld. Maybe because the weight is now more evenly distributed and now all focused at the front of the camera with the lens and diffuser pulling the camera downwards.

So, here are some shots from my outing.

Taipei ,Taiwan

2011-10-19T12:22:00.008+11:00

September 5th, I flew to Hong Kong and September 7th, from Hong Kong to Taipei Taiwan and then back to KL on September 13th.

If my memory serves me right, the last time that I was in Taipei was when I was 4 years old. This means its been 22 years since I last stepped foot in the country known as the "Heart of Asia" and definitely, many things would have changed.

I'm going there on business though, distributors meeting for CK socks, then I will also meet up with I.S.T staffs to discuss on 2(X)ist plans and finally, my 3 days extension to explore Taipei.

Skipping to the extension days since there is nothing much about the meeting other than all of them agreeing that the next CK socks meeting will be held in Malaysia and I am put in the hot soup to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Also, from a supposedly 1 day meeting, they changed it to a 2 days meeting, meaning there is more for me to plan. :(

First off, we (Eddie, ChanTM, Dad and I) actually flew to Hong Kong for a 2 days stopover before flying to Taipei. Of cause, I have with me, my trusty companion Danbo. This time round, he looks more like a tourist that when he went to Japan :) he now has a DSLR, just like me :)

The few places worth mentioning in Hong Kong is firstly of cause "Lei Yu Mun". A place to get the freshest seafood. YUMMY!!!!!
Then next will be Causeway Bay if Im not mistaken. This is Time Square in HK.
2 days in HK is basically, eat eat eat. So, next stop, Taipei Taiwan. Danbo taking a last look at HK before setting to the skies for Taipei.
Like I said, meeting aside, coz there is nothing special, there is this place where the 2(X)ist boss took us to. Its a small cafe, with in-house singer. The interior is filled with antiques and well, its just a very relaxing place to sit in and have their specialty which is fruit tea and home made pizza.
Next, Taipei 101. A building I know 100% wasnt there when I last came. LOL. Again, nothing spectacular, just a very tall building with very expensive brands inside.
I ventured here alone, the Chang Kai Shek Memorial Hall. This, I have memory of. I remember seeing a picture that I took here when I was young. I remember this place pretty clearly from the back of my head and reaching here again, I really feel somewhat happy. Although I was alone this time, I spent a lot of time walking this square, looking at all the fine details of the buildings, and just sat there on the steps, enjoying the win and sunshine.

An art piece drawn on the walls along the Taipei Art Museum.
This time around, I also managed to photograph my first ever sunset shot. It was taken in Danshui area. Its a jetty, a tourist destination and also a place where lovers come to enjoy the wind and sunset.
The shots were never possible done handheld and I did not bring my tripod. Fortunately enough, a nice uncle came up to me and offered me his tripod. He even gave me tips on how I should take the picture and the settings that I should use. GOOD!!! Above is my setting and below is his settings. So much difference. LOL
Being in Taipei, I did a research and it is a must to go to JiuFen. Its a really beautiful place. Nice scenery, nice food and nice people everywhere :)
Even Danbo cannot miss not taking a picture here. Danbo cant take for me though. :(

Danbo and friends...

Overall, this trip was a nice one for me. Mainly because its been a long long time since I came to Taiwan and the feeling I had sitting in the memorial hall is really nice. Then I also enjoyed walking in places like Danshui and Jiufen. Of coz there are other things that made this trip quite memorable, in a funny way.

Maybe next time, my trip here will be during the colder months of the year. Its pretty darn hot when I came.

After a long long time

2011-08-01T14:13:00.004+10:00

My last serious outing to shoot insects was during Chinese New Year this year. During that shoot, I fell down a slope, twisted my ankle and since then have not been shooting insects other than those that was found at home. So, naturally, I have rusted my skills. Lighting is hard this time around. Took me quite some time to familiarize myself with the lighting again.

On Saturday (August 30th 2011), I finally decided to take a drive down to KL and have a go again at macro photography. Also tried something new this time, by using a monopod for extra support. Always did handheld shots before. So below are the results from my 2 hours shoot.

Japan June29-July5 2011

2011-08-01T13:47:00.005+10:00

It was a company trip with the sole purpose of market research, to see what is in trend and how the Japanese markets their products to their consumers. Majority of the time in Japan was for work but there too was time for some fun. So, I will focus on the fun part, at least it was fun for me :)

So, June 29 night, we boarded Malaysia Airlines en route to Narita Airport Japan.

Other than myself, Danbo was the first of our group of 8 to witness the sunrise from above the Land of the Rising Sun - JAPAN

First things first, I am in Japan with one target. To find something for my B. Danbo lend a hand in directions. Good Good!!!
Found it. Burberry Blue Label. Burberry is basically everywhere but Blue Label, only in Japan. Thus, I bought a wallet for my B. YES! hahaha :)
And, it's my habit to actually try McD of different countries that I go to. Looks the same though for the breakfast set. Didnt get to try the normal sets :(
Time for expensive stuff in Japan... aka... FOOD.

Round standard watermelon, 5000yen = RM120

Square watermelon, 15000yen = RM370
Our famous CHAR SIEW PAO... in Malaysia, RM1.50 each

In JAPAN its 420yen = RM15 each
Also, if you are hungry, fret not... they have this bugger burger to keep you full for one whole week. A whopping 5 decker. And, its 1,400yen = RM60
So, the fun part, 8 guys and 1 toy, went up to Fuji in summer.

Its still quite cooling up here, if you compare it to Tokyo itself, ranging at 39'c every day :(

A snowless Mt Fuji in summer
Also, there is Disney Sea, the only theme park under the Disney name that is not DISNEY LAND. and also, only in Japan. So, worth a try to see see look look.

TITANIC... where is my Rose? hmmm

This place is actually more of a place for photographers. The setup is nothing as childish as Disneyland but the rides, same, kiddish. The setup here is spectacularly beautiful. They even have a live size ship in this theme park. The one where I was looking for my Rose as pictured above.

This trip is super tiring. 2 days of fun for us guys but for the rest, its work and work in Japan equals walking a lot. Everyday, we wake and leave at 8am, walking all the way only returning to the hotel around 10pm and from that time span out, we only stopped at a maximum 1.5 hours for lunch. Dinner is usually after 10. So, the rest of the time, its WALKING... hohohohoho

Danbo the emotionless toy

2011-06-20T15:26:00.003+10:00

The Danbo craze for some photographers are escalating and somehow, I got sucked into it.

It is a 13cm cardboard figurine dubbed the "Emotionless Toy".

Have always been looking for a lil model for me to bring along for my photography trips overseas and has started off with the Gundam SD models. Later on I discovered Danbo and yes, it is more appropriate than a Robot holding guns and swords so I searched all over the web looking for it.

Was a tough find, everywhere they ran out of stocks. Finally, I got one. Very in love with it and immediately made it a model for several shots around the house.

My personal favourite so far. Staring into the unknown.
Danbo looks at 00 QanT wondering if it could be fixed.
Yup. It can. Thanks :D lol
Dejected Danbo
HUH???
Say Cheeeze
Peek-a-boo Danbo
Danbo with crystal ball
Danbo lost in living room
Climbing up the deck
:) :)

Long-Horn Beetle

2011-06-20T15:20:00.002+10:00

Usually, when I go hunting for insects, I end up not getting what I set out to look for and even if I did see something that make me go "Hey! This is it. Finally!", I will somehow not be able to shoot it. Either it's too high up on a tree, conditions are not right to shoot or there are other external factors not enabling me to shoot them.

However, last week, came a surprising visitor in my house. A little long horn beetle. Although not the big giant ones that I see in photo forums, still this was an amazing find and my first.

Also fortunately this lil bugger is very nice to me and stayed still for me to snap up-close pics of it.

A really up-close portrait of the long horn beetle.

Taken with Tamron SP90 coupled with Raynox DCR250.

Scary alien like bug with huge pinchers :)

Gundam SD Models on a Sunny Hot Day

2011-05-10T14:59:00.003+10:00

It was a very hot Mother's Day Sunday. There was nothing I can do other than watching TV so, I decided to brave the hot weather, take out my Gundam SD Models which I have been collecting lately because I wanna use them as my models to highlight places that I have visited and also because I have this habit of liking to put things together.

So, here are some of my Gundam shots. Nothing fancy used. Just my trusty Nikon D7000, Tamron 17-50mm VC and the garden.

That's all for a hot weather shoot. I went back to my room sweating and the models went in the room feeling like they have been in an oven.

Garden Hunting

2011-04-13T15:18:00.002+10:00

It's been raining almost few days in a week for the past weeks.

Always thought that some nice critters will turn up in our garden but thats not the case :(

Because of the water feature that we have, all that turned up were some pretty active red dragonflies (which I cant seem to find them sitting still for a shoot) and loads of frogs... them being the easy target, i scooped them up from the pool, brought them to the garden, placed them down slowly, let them calm down and stay still before i start shooting. Unfortunately, its getting late, did not have my flash with me, didnt want to waste time running up to get them as the frog may leave and so, opted for the built-in-flash which resulted in some harsh lighting. Nonetheless, i used the frog to practice on photo stacking so i can get both frog's eyes in focus at near 1:1 magnification using a Tamron SP90.

Singapore

2011-04-05T22:52:00.006+10:00

I was in Singapore for 3 days, attending a fashion show event that we were invited to participate in. The first fashion show we had was in 2008 in Singapore themed "Sexy in the City". Unfortunately at that time, I do not have a camera worth taking pictures in low light. Also at that time, my interest in photography has not ignited.
Now, our second fashion show in Singapore themed "Brief Encounters" in conjunction with the Men's Fashion Week 2011. Singapore is the 3rd country to ever host this event thus far and we were invited to parade our brands.
Nothing much about the event though as I was seated in quite an awkward location, unable to snap decent pictures so i think i shall focus more on the scenery of Singapore which I was able to venture out alone at night for a brief moment of photo shooting.

One of the models parading our brands. This were the only decent shots I got. Others were side views :(
On to the landscape photos. Location, Marina Bay Sands Hotel, where we stayed throughout the event.
Marina Bay Sands Hotel - from the outside
Marina Bay Sands Infinity Pool @ 6am
Marina Bay Sands Infinity Pool @ 6am
Marina Bay Sands Infinity Pool @ 3pm
The pool was a blast. Unfortunately, I did not bring my boardpants so I cant jump into it to get a better picture from inside the pool itself overlooking the city. That was one mistake I punched myself silly for making. :(

Singapore Night View from Marina Bay Sands Roof Top Deck
Eye On Singapore
Marina Bay Sands from One Fullerton

Marina Bay Sands from One Fullerton

Overall, the fashion show was a success and was utterly exciting but to me, the photography experience is way better and one that I would not mind doing again, maybe in other countries in the coming future. :)

CNY Captures

2011-02-12T00:13:00.006+11:00

Let's start... Happy Chinese New Year...
CNY like any other year is pretty boring for me. First day, to uncle's(dad's side) place for ang pao then will head straight home. Second day, aunts(mom's side) comes over and again ang pao. Third day onwards, random people come and go. So, I took the abundance of time that I have on hand to do some hunting.
First off, actually this wasn't exactly CNY because it was 2 days before CNY but what the heck... still CNY... found this fella in the water feature so I took it out and with Charles helping me shade the frog from the sunlight because it will first, kill the frog and secondly overexpose the frog, i snapped away at it.
This little frog was kind enough to tolerate me handling it, placing it here and there (actually not to say it can run away from me also...hahahaa)
Frog looking into the distance, wondering when it can escape from my giant lens being so near to his face.
Notice how sharp the eyes are??? hehehe... look deeper into the eyes... what see u ?
A zoomed up version. The frog stayed so still I can actually pose myself in its eyes for this shot :)
Next up, this is definitely CNY... went out to hunt for some bugs... it's quite rare that I get to do some natural light shots outside. Usually I will be in jungles or under huge vegetation and trees that prevented enough sunlight for natural shots... this place was quite different...

My first Hoverfly discovered here.
It would be a waste not to catch a Hoverfly in flight shot.

Being named Hoverfly for a reason, it does hover like a hummingbird therefore, shots of it flying is quite possible but impossible also for some degree because its so small and moves so quickly its hard to get a focus. I stayed under the hot sun for almost 30 minutes, chasing this fly around. Everytime I get to focus, it flies off. Here are some of my OK shots of it flying.

and also a small spider to complete the set for the day. Total time used, 2.5 hours... pictures taken and usable, 10. This place was also the first time I saw a Giraffe Weevil but unfortunately, the wind was strong, I can focus in standing on the leaf and it flew off. Better luck next time I hope.
Next stop, Gasing Hills. This was quite a screwed up day. Went shooting and was first greeted by this very good model. Robberfly.
Then found this leaf which I cannot not take a picture of. I dont know why...hahaha
Then, my first time seeing a tortoise beetle. Not one but 3 of them together. Kinda excited.
Closeup on Tortoise Beetle.
To end off this trip, this was my last photo taken that day. Then I started to descend from the hill when accident struck. I slipped, twisted my ankle, sat in pain for 30minutes without anyone helping me, limped out in pain and came home with a leg like elephant.
Finally, this cicada found at home. At this magnification, the DOF is low so I tried some focus stacking to increase the DOF. Not too sure if its good but I think its better than the original taken.

Placed a flower behind it to create a different background than the normal green as reflected from the grass.

Well, that's all so far from my CNY collection. Saw some new bugs, snapped some and missed some. Hopefully a good start to a better macro year ahead.

One bad news, my Drybox died. Now my cameras are in danger of fungus attack. Still awaiting for a reply from the supplier if it can be fixed. Quite desperate to get it fixed ASAP or else I guess I will get a new one.

Thaipusam 2011

2011-01-26T14:14:00.007+11:00

Ever since I started photography, I have always wanted to visit Batu Caves during Thaipusam. I missed it last year as I was way too inexperienced and the equipment that I have at that time is not suited for night photography. This time around, I think I have more experience and my gears are better suited for night photography.

So, there I was in KL Sentral, waiting at Platform 3 for a train straight to Batu Caves.

It was scary. An entire platform filled with people, all going to Batu Caves for Thaipusam. What's more scary is that I am the only Chinese that I can spot there. It was hard to move around. I didn't want to walk around and shove my way pass them too much as I do not want to irritate them. I see many angry faces because of the heat in the sea of people cramped in a small place and also because I feel that I am the only outsider there.

Surprisingly enough, they were pretty nice people there. A few talked to me, asking what I'm doing there, am I alone, and other simple talks. It was nice.
Every train that came was already jam packed with people. We were 7 stops from Batu Caves and the train came from Port Klang. More than 20 stops before reaching us. So, naturally, we will be in deep trouble getting in. 4 trains left before I finally boarded and it was at 2.00am. I waited for almost 2 hours. People were pushing and shoving their way into the trains. They literally squeeze everyone in, all body to body, face stuck to others' faces. It was even funnier where I saw one man with his hands up holding the bar to balance himself and when the door opened, people again started to squeeze their way in and one young lady, I think in her 20's, quite pretty looking actually, she was squeezed so tightly along with a few of her friends, her face ended up stuck to the man's armpits as the door finally closed. I dont think there is any room for her to remove her face all through the 7 stops. HAHAHAHAHA... I cant help but laugh when the train left and there were actually a few others beside me who shared my view and laughed together with me. :D
A few happy faces that managed to get onto the train. Even posed for me and later waved bye to me as the train left.

Finally, I reached Batu Caves at 2.45am. It was even more of a shock to me as I stepped out of the train. Seriously I stood there stunned beside the road for a little while before I finally stepped out of it and took out my camera to start shooting. It was like I entered an express train that took only 45 minutes to reach India. I was actually scared at first, not knowing if I should hop back onto the train to go back but after waiting 2 hours for a train, it's pretty darn stupid to be doing that so, I began my adventure.

Kavadi bearers. The one thing that I would like to see most for my outing this time. Many of them carried one and many of different sizes and shapes. It was indeed interesting to see. Some where so gigantic and heavy that the bearers actually need assistants behind, holding a chair so that they can sit and rest while on their march to the cave.
Besides Kavadi bearers, there are also those that are on trance, with piercings all over their body. If I'm not mistaken, it's done I think to repay to the gods because of the blessings received or to cleanse themselves of sins committed.
These were the highlights of my trip. Seeing those piercings for myself. Have always seen them in the forum as well as magazines but never by myself. I feel the pain taking the photos but to them, it's nothing. They are in a state of a trance and feel no pain from all the hooks. The devotees were pulling themselves forward, eyes always looking at the cave. It was like they are trying their very best to reach the cave, to where the holy gods are but there were those behind them, pulling them back with the strings attached to the hooks, trying to prevent them or to slow their progress to the cave. I do not know what the meaning of doing that were but seriously, the sight was an eye opener. They were accompanied with drumbeats and religious chantings.
What scares me most about this is, the hooks arent hooked in deep into the flesh but just about 1cm or so deep. With the amount of pressure applied when the devotees pull themselves forward, along with the pressure from those trying to pull them back, I see the extend the skin stretches, I was really worried that the skin actually tears apart. WOW! That would definitely be painful, mainly for me as a spectator than to them who's in trance.
This is how they hooked the things in. During this process, I do not think that he is already in trance as I could see the pain in his face expressions when each hooks were placed into the flesh.
Finally, the shots important to take were the cleansing shots by the riverside. Devotees must first shower here, clean themselves, then make their way into the river below for another round of washing up and prayers before they are deemed clean for the possession.
OK, another funny thing that happened. The water that the kid is bathing in is actually pumped up from the river. It is not to say exactly clean but there was this fellow photographer, he is a blonde man, so I think he does not know about this water. He saw many people praying and washing themselves and he can't help it but went and washed his face. It was OK to wash his face but then he started to rinse his mouth with it. I tried to stop him but he was so happily posing with a thumbs up to his friends so, I let him be. Was funny seeing his actions though.

This outing has really been an eye opener for me. It was my first time taking the KTM, first time entering KL Sentral, first time to Thaipusam and witnessing this Holy event and also definitely my first big scale event done alone besides the little macro works that I do alone.

My journey started at 10.45pm from my home and I reached home again the next day at 10.30am. A total of 12 hours for me outside taking photos.

I first came home and looked at the pictures I took. I thought it was OK but it was a disaster actually. I wasted 12 hours and a good night sleep taking lousy pictures. I failed to capture the intensity and mood of the event as pointed out by fellow members from the forum. All because I did not do my homework. I did not do more research on spots that I should be in to take pictures and also the themes that I should take. Maybe next year I will tackle it again. Will use this time to gain more experience, more knowledge and maybe next year will be better. All in all, it was a good experience for me.

Flickr

2011-01-17T18:10:00.002+11:00

Finally created a flickr account to post some of my pictures taken.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/reaganchen/

Another site where I can post more of the pictures I took. Mostly macro shots :)

New Gears!

2011-01-10T14:01:00.003+11:00

Time passes by so quickly and I have already led myself into the world of photography for 1 year and 2 months now...

As time passes, I start to realise that my D3000 isn't suitable anymore. Every time I take a picture, I look at it and it somehow disappoints me. This is even more applicable when I am trying to shoot in low light conditions and boosting the ISO really kills the image. So, I opted for an upgrade. A new body with good performance at an affordable price. In came the new Nikon D7000.

Costing RM3,700 for the body only, its already more expensive than my D3000 set.

Body made partially of magnesium alloy, its way tougher and more solid than D3000. Not to mention the much better ISO performance, increased AF points, everything is way better :)
Also new to my addition, a Tamron 17-50 VC f/2.8

Guess I'm all ready to go. Prepare.... I'm gonna be on a shooting frenzy

Spiders... new passion for Macro

2010-11-03T14:39:00.004+11:00

Back hunting again after quite some time and I caught my first jumping spider. It's tough to capture and frame but it soon became more of a challenge than a problem.

One problem though, it was tough locating them and once located, its even tougher to relocate them onto a suitable location for the shot. Dont even know if they are poisonous or not... lol ....

So, here are my first spider shots... hopefully there will be more to come :)

Oh... this is no spider... just another new species I found and decided to capture :)

Korea 2010

2010-09-27T14:05:00.021+10:00

September 10th 2010, 11.00pm I sat in the waiting hall in KLIA, getting ready to board Korean Air Flight KE674 to Seoul Korea. It will be my first time to Korea and this time, I will be there alone for 3 days before meeting up with Richard to have our CK SS11 buy on the 14th.

I sat there waiting, and the fear crept in as I realized that I will be there alone, in a place that most of them do not understand English and I do not speak Korean.

The flight took 6.5 hours and I stepped out onto Korean soil, out of Incheon International Airport, looking at the morning skies of Seoul Korea and... it was raining...

The place that I will stay is Gangnam Best Western Hotel in Gangnam. It's approximately 70 minutes from the airport.
Arriving tired and exhausted at 9am, I thought that I can check-in and rest a bit but to my horror, I can only check-in at 2pm. So, I lay down my luggages, went to wash up in the rest room and began my journey. First stop, was Myeongdong. The cosmetics heaven for ladies. The first horror, 15 minutes walk to Gangnam Subway Station. The journey there already started the woes for my entire day with a sore feet and this was what greeted me in the station. :)

This place reminds me of Tokyo Harajuku. Shops are everywhere and mostly cosmetics. In the same square, you can see at least 5 shops of the same cosmetics brand scattered at every corner of Myeongdong.

There is also loads of things to see other than cosmetics. For example, if you do not believe in Jesus, you are doomed to eternity in HELL... damn it... i think im going to HELL... :(
The Twin Mushrooms
The Garfield wannabe
The "I-Dunno-What-You-Are"
After hours in Myeongdong, I realized that I am not able to spend the whole day there so, I became adventurous and toured this area by foot, taking me to Deoksugung-gil, the 2nd palace in Seoul Korea. It is the second palace of the King. Or, it is the palace where the King's brother stayed.
There are chinese wordings because Korea was actually ruled by China back then and thus, the language. At that time, Korea did not have their own alphabets. In 1910, Korea was ruled by Japan and actually, Korea was spelt as Corea at that time but the kiasu Japanese back then said that the letter C came before the letter J for Japan so they changed it to K that makes it now KOREA... lol ...
The dressing of a traditional Korean Imperial Guard... better known as the Bangladesh or Nepalese JAGA that we have now at our housing area...
Inside the palace compound...

I was also fortunate to be there at the right time as it was the last performance for the day. THe changing of imperial JAGAs in the palace.
They even have this, all clad in bright yellow, they are the musicians playing the musics during the changing of the JAGAs... cool right... our JAGAs just walk off and change shift... no music... only sometimes their radio... hmmm hmmm

See.... new JAGA... so different from the first one above... this one face black like my shoe... the earlier one smiled for me...

To end everything, the Korean Orchestra came out to strut their stuff one more time.

No where else to go, I headed back to Myeongdong and got myself this... super long ice-cream... costing me KRW1,500, coming up to RM4.50...
Finally, around 7pm, I got back to Gangnam, checked-in and got this nice view from my room. Rest a bit and then it was off again to the streets. Legs hurt like hell but I still got to eat.

Again, walked 15 minutes the the subway station and lingered around that area looking for food. So, my first Korean meal. Korean BBQ. I didnt know what to order so I just poked at anything and this came to me.
Hot plate BBQed internal organs... BLUEKSSSS....

DAY 2

Started off early, today being very adventurous, I did not ask for directions. Got onto the web last night, searched for places to go, marked them in my book and off I went. First stop, was to a place called Yongsan, to visit their HUGE Yongsan Electronics Market. The journey there requires me to change subway lines. See, so adventurous. I thought it was safe reaching there at 10am as everything will already be open. I was there, walking, looking at a few shops selling camera lenses... the prices are really attractive... unfortunately, I did not have enough cash on hand and I did not want to swipe my card and also, only that few shops was opened. The others were just preparing to start business when the time is already 10.45am. I left empty handed, crutching my *ahem* knowing that I let go a good deal.

Off to the train station again, taking a brand new line towards Itaewon. This place, shown below, is very westernized because the US military base is here. Loads of international eateries here.
I indulged myself with some well known food... Starbucks...

After that, from Itaewon, I sat at the bus stop, looking at the many buses that stopped and finally boarded bus no.3 headed for Namsan. My destination, Namsam Seoul Tower.
The bus traveled slowly up hill, the view became misty, it was drizzling, and the bus finally came to a halt. I got down, looking all around me and I see no tower. Then, I realized, I had to hike uphill. No vehicles allowed.

The place was cold. Definitely not prepared for it.
View from Tower.
A little cam-whoring. Since I was there alone, I need to position my camera far far, set everything and the timer then ran for this shot. Malaysia, 4,595.33km away... hmmm... no wonder I cant find it...
Below the tower, was this. Millions of locks placed by couples in Seoul and perhaps even tourists. They write their names, wishes of love and then lock it here.

This fella must have loved his/her partner like hell. Or maybe he/she is there just to show how much he/she loved his/her partner.
Of cause I left my mark there too... No marker pen so this was it. It says "Reagan Love Suet Leng" :)
From the Tower, I took another bus to Namdaemoon market. It's just an ordinary market for tourists.

This fella's potato balls was a blast...damn YUMMY... Dinner for tonight.... Cup Noodles... didnt wanna spend another night eating alone looking at families and couples... loads of fun today tho... venturing around and going everywhere not being afraid of getting lost...

Day 3

Today is my final day alone is Seoul. Partner will reach tonight and work starts from then on. So, upon my arrival, I arranged for a day tour, to places I did not visit... not cheap tho... KRW76,000... mahalnya... RM228

Seoul Buddhist Temple.... according to the tour guide, 70% of Koreans are buddhist...

Main Palace of Seoul Korea. The place where the King stayed. It was destroyed when the Japanese invaded Korea in 1910 and then restored when the Japanese left. To me, this place was HUGE but according to the tour guide, what we see is only 10% of what there was before the invasion. In the background, the white line on the mountain is actually their boarder, the original boarder erected to keep enemies out of the kingdom.

Finally, a shot of myself in Korea. Taken by tour members. A family of 5 from Phillipine that took me into their group throughout the tour because I was alone... hehehe...
Main entrance of the palace...
A longkang in the palace, used to be a river... we cross it to cleans all evil before entering the palace... i went in a sinner, came out holy... how cool is that... then again i sinned... hmmm

Below is the official meeting room for their important country issues...
Below is the study place where the 4th king of Korea invented their Korean alphabets...
This is the entertainment hall. If you noticed, there are many small creature statues on the roof of each building in the palace. The more number of statues on it symbolizes the importance of that place in the palace. So, I noticed that the main meeting hall, where the most important political issues are discussed, has less statues than this entertainment hall. I asked the tour guide, he said that the last king, like entertainment more than work... MUAAHHAHAHAHA
This is the King's mom's home in the palace...

Next stop, to the Noble's houses. This is what the Noble's stayed in back in ancient Korea. Rich fellas with big houses...

Little children clad in traditional Korean costumes getting ready for performances.
That was basically it about the tour. Visited other places like Ginseng factory, some precious rock factory and another placed called Insadong. Insadong is an antique market. Nothing much to take photos of there and I was also too tired to lift my camera so thats it for my touring in Seoul Korea.

I know there are loads more places that I should have visited but the limited funds and time that I have there prevented me from doing so. Furthermore, it is not the season that I wanted to be in Korea. Maybe in the future, I will travel here again, together with B, during WINTER and complete what was left out.

Work work work and finally its time to leave. Incheon airport surprised me with this. Fellow Malaysians, if you do not like airplane food, come, snap a few and you are ready to go... They have chili trees in the airport... :)

So, again, Korea Air KE671 departs Incheon at 4.35pm. The flight was pleasant, the weather was good, some bad turbulence and the skies turned magical to welcome me home...

AHN-NYEONG-HAH-SEH-YO and KAMSA-HAMNIDA

Kuching 2010

2010-09-24T13:25:00.011+10:00

After years of talking about seeing crocodiles leap out of the water to catch its prey, I finally made the chat into reality... together with B, we flew to Kuching, a trip only for the 2 of us... August 27th 2010, we board AirAsia and flew straight to Kuching Sarawak ...

Upon arrival, we went straight to our hotel stay at Grand Margeritta Kuching. After resting for a while, the journey begins...

Cat Museum...they have quite a cute guide... the floors were filled with cat paw stickers, guiding us to the museum itself but upon arrival, the main entrance was a killer... its as though we are entering those Haunted House amusement rides...

They even show that people there loves their cat so much, they actually have a cat cemetery for their beloved pets... how cool is that...

The next destination was the Sarawak Cultural Museum... this was actually quite a nice place but the weather and journey there was tough... not only was it a 1 hour drive to this place, the journey was scenic but bumpy... very bumpy... it was as though I was on a boat ride... and it was actually the first time I felt so uneasy in a car that I had to force myself to sleep... arriving there, the weather was great... clear blue skies... super hot weather... haihz... and the ticket wasn't cheap... RM60 per pax to enter...

It was actually a very nice place... we have clear blue skies, big mountains in the background, wooden houses, tonnes of greens, no cars and best of all, I see nature rather than a concrete jungle like we always do in the cities...

What B and myself is standing on is actually a bridge, made by Sarawak natives... let's see, if I am being chased by headhunters or even wild animals, this bridge will be the one that makes me lose my life... so narrow, so many holes beside...lol...

Some of the traditional houses of Sarawak natives...
And yeah... the Sarawak Rainforest World Music Festival is also held here...Day 2 was the exciting one... although only visiting 2 places, it was the places that I came to Kuching specifically for... the Jong's Crocodile Farm and the Semenggong Wildlife Centre...

First stop, Semenggong Wildlife Centre... it's located about 30 minutes cab ride out of the city, into the wilderness.. or at least suburbs... when we arrived, we have to walk a few hundred meters into the jungle to locate the feeding area of the Orang Utans...

We were all asked to be silent as noises will scare away the Orang Utans... I was pleasantly excited.. it will be my first time seeing one of them in the wild and now in the confinement of a zoo compound...

From a distance, we saw tree branches and leaves moving but we cannot see the great ape... it was like those Jurassic Park movie... when T-Rex is coming, all you see first are the trees moving... then slowly, it emerges, swinging from branches to branches... my first sight of the Orang Utan in the wild... immediately, all I hear was sounds of camera shutters clicking away... mine too of cause...

The one below is a great pose.... :)

A mother and her baby Orang Utan... and the baby is not camera shy at all... quite a cam whore actually...always looking at us while we snap their pics...

Finally, this giant... moving slowly, she seriously resembles a ghost... long hair, scary face, in the jungle and yes, its a female... to ensure that young children are allowed to look at this pic, i censored that part with leaves... hohohohoho

Next stop, the main attraction, Jong's Crocodile Farm... in this farm, there are tonnes of pictures of the giant crocodiles that Sarawakians caught, killed and when cut open, revealing scary discoveries... Crocodiles in Sarawak has a thing for human flesh it seems... many were killed and they found watches, human teeth and all in the crocs... one even has a whole boy, still fully intact, in the stomach of a giant crocodile. Below is a replica of the skull of the killer crocodile which ate the boy whole, not piece by piece...
The many crocodiles in this farm... many many many...

Their famous crowd puller... the tail-less crocodile...

This was what B and myself came all the way to Kuching for... to watch crocodiles leap up from the water to catch their prey... often see it in Discovery Channel and Animal Planet but now again, a first time for myself to see them in action for real... an animal that weight can actually leap so high... truly amazing in my point of view...

what will Kuching be without a picture with one of the many cat statues that they have all around the city center...

Finally of cause, the Kuching famous Kolo Mee... below was mine... the original Kolo Mee...
This was the killer... B thought of having prawn mee for breakfast... we both thought that it was what we all have in KL... spicy soup and all... but... to our surprise, its KOLO MEE WITHOUT THE MEAT, BUT REPLACED WITH PRAWNS... lol...
Overall, it was a great trip... expensive tho... hiring a taxi driver to bring us around... total taxi bill for 3 days, RM360

Phuket 2010

2010-07-08T15:44:00.011+10:00

June 24th 2010
It was Charles' and Vicky's Registration of Marriage yesterday.
Needless to say, both parents from both sides were happy.

For Vicky's side, "YAY! My daughter is married. One less worry for us."
For our side, "YAY! My son is finally a grown up. Faster bring me a grandchild."

Anyways, today, we all woke at 3.30am to prepare for the van waiting outside our house at 4.00am to pick us up and send us off to LCCT for our trip to PHUKET THAILAND. We will be there on a 4D3N Wedding Photography trip for Charles and Vicky. Those joining the trip is ....

Charles Chen ... The Married Guy

Vicky Chow ... The Married Gal

Reagan Chen ... The Brother @ Busy Body

Suet Leng ... The Brother's Girlfriend and Companion

Puee Swee ... The Photographer

Teressa Lee ... The Make-Up Person

So, we arrived there, in Phuket and was given a warm welcome by the hotel personnel in charged of picking us up from the airport to the hotel.
Destination was Surin Beach. Not the famous Patong Beach because that beach is too crowded and not suitable for photographing. Or also because we had no choice for the hotel booked was at Surin Beach. :)
The hotel that will accommodate us for the next 4 days will be Courtyard Marriot.
Not surprising, this Hotel was a blast. The service is good and the people helpful and well-mannered. Other than that, a private beach was just minutes away from us and upon reaching the beach, I was amazed. I very seldom see such a clean and empty beach. And the setup of the beach was great. Big waves, very windy and a rocky area at the far side of the beach. Everything needed for good photography.
With strong winds and big waves, there are also dangers. At particular areas of the beach, there are red flags being placed, notifying us that the area has the strongest waves and is not suitable for swimming.
The photo taking went smooth, not gonna post the pictures here as there are too many and I was not allowed to post any of them prior to the wedding dinner. :(
So, that aside, I post pictures of us having fun instead.

Me
Suet Leng
Charles, Vicky, Puee and Teressa

Since taking their wedding photo was the main priority of this trip there is nothing more that I can do other than snap snap snap picture of them them them... :(
Out of the 4 days, there is only one day off. Day 3, when we all went down to Patong Beach to feel the life of Phuket. The place where most tourists will be, most massage parlours will be, most shopping malls will be, most this and most that will be.
It was even the first time that I went for a "Thai Girl Show". Knowing that I will be seeing girls actually dance and then strip in front of me, I thought that, "Hey! This could be some sort of a turn on... " BUT... OMFG... I came out disgusted... the shows that I saw, the acts that they did, the things they sent flying and popping... lets not say more...i was disgusted...
Anyways, when there is time off for me, I take advantage of it and venture off, taking pictures for my personal collection...
Taken at Patong Beach... where drunkards linger around...
My Trail
The Doggy's Trail
A must have shot in Phuket... lol...

The collection below is the shots I like most which I took at the rocky area at Surin Beach. One that made me go so near to the edge of the cliffs, where the waves from the great sea slams onto the rocks, at times leaving me in waist deep sea water and finally, one tremendous wave that slammed so hard onto the rocks, the water flew so high up that I was soaked, my camera soaked and left me running back to the beach to dry off my camera instead of myself... :D

-The End-

Heartbreaking

2010-05-11T16:27:00.003+10:00

Started doing macro shots for a while already I think. A month or so at least. It is at some point encouraging to know that some people say that I have improved a lot compared to my first macro shots but then again, I noticed that all I got to offer for comments and critics were everyday bugs...

Critters like robberfly, ants, housefly, a few weevil and lady bugs... thats all. Several outings done myself and I came back with the same things. Nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe most other bugs that people shot are normal to them but definitely not me because, I have not met them yet... lol...
Guess I gotta try harder and maybe search for new places to venture to...

Again, same critters, different day different place...

Taman Rimba Kiara - Macro

2010-04-29T14:31:00.003+10:00

People were there in the morning jogging and exercising whereas I am there holding a camera searching high and low amongst the trees and bushes for critters.

These were what I came back with. Some of the acceptable ones in my opinion

Macro Photography

2010-04-20T15:10:00.005+10:00

Started off buying my DSLR because I always wanted to try capturing pictures manually, instead of just the normal P&S camera where everything is done automatically by the camera itself.

After playing around with it for some time, the interest grew and I wanted to know more about photography. There seems to be more than just focusing manually. There are terms new to me such as DOF, f/stop, composition, lighting, bokeh, vibration control, working distance, and most importantly, the wide variety of lenses and their functions... Thus, my first upgrade was a Nikon 18-200mm VRII to get in more range since my kit lens was just a Nikon 18-55mm VR... Of cause, this purchase was not just based on the working distance and zoom range but also because of image quality. Again, this brought a whole new experience to my photography interest. From interest, it slowly began to develop into a hobby. I started wanting to get more out of the camera and true enough, the upgrade in lens wasn't enough. A telephoto lens wasnt just enough if not coupled with a flashgun. So, the Nikon SB600 flashlight came into my collection and without a doubt, again it put a huge "WOW" in me seeing what difference a flash can do to my images and also how bouncing flash can affect a picture. Things to learn are just never ending.

Spent some time with the telephoto and flashgun and have been to quite a few hot photo spots to test it out. True enough, this lens was a dedicated telephoto and wide angle lens. My interest grew more and more until I finally came to this point where I wanted to do more. I wanted to see the world in ways that we do not usually see them. This, brings me into the world of macro.

A third party lens, very famous amongst even professionals, the Tamron AF SP90mm 1:1 macro lens. Its a whole new experience to me. Seeing the sharpest and most detailed images of insects and flowers. Seeing the cube like shapes in the eyes of a fly that we do not usually see and also at times, catching creatures that we do not usually see in the city.

Still new to this genre in photography, my shots are not good at all. With continuous training and guidance from fellow photographers, hopefully I will be able to capture more mesmerizing images. Now, it's just newbie macro shots done by a first timer.

Up next, my DIY flash diffuser for Macro Photography :)

Exploring the Creative Side of Me!

2010-03-17T13:23:00.012+11:00

Being myself, someone anti-social and does not talk much, I find life beginning to be boring. Something needed to change and mom kick start the process by buying me my first DSLR camera after seeing me drool at the sight of other people holding one.
YAY.
Now, maybe I can explore the creative side of me... since they say lefties are creative and also being a noob in this, I will need to talk to people more and learn from them so, makes me more sociable I guess.

November 2009This is my new camera. Nikon D3000.
It's Nikon's newest entry level DSLR for beginners, like myself. It's main selling point is a function called Guide Mode which eases beginners to learn about what DSLR cameras can do. Unfortunately, I have not once tried this mode. Instead, I skipped straight to the manual mode and started learning the hard way on how to operate this machine. So far, I guess everything is going fine.

One thing I learn about photography now is, what the naked eye sees is not what a picture will turn out to be. There is more than meets the eye... ooosh.... transformers tagline...

As of March 2010
Below are images taken from November 2009 till March 2010 with the D3000.
This blog will from today on be my photo album and also my travel diary.

Insects

Landscape

Birds

Portrait

As I learn more about photography techniques and the various lenses and accessories, the more I become drawn into this hobby. It's an expensive hobby to be in but if it can create images that will be very memorable, I do not see why I should have second thoughts about this.
Furthermore, I notice myself being more vocal and is able to communicate with people more easily. At least amongst people with the same interest. :)

2009-09-10T14:06:00.018+10:00

August 18th 2009

I woke at 4am, or I should say I nap till 4am since I slept at 2.30am. Got cleaned up, prepared myself, walked downstairs to see my parents already waiting. I grabbed by luggage and walked out towards the taxi waiting for us.
Today, both my parents, the company director and his wife, my manager and myself will be flying to Vietnam. The guys, including myself, will be there for business purposes whereas the ladies, to shop.
It's been quite some time since I went to the airport, so I was kinda excited. Its a 2 hour flight from LCCT to Ho Chi Minh. Upon reaching HO CHI MINH airport, I was surprised. The airport is empty. Despite the many planes on the hanger, the airport is actually empty. Well, my adventures starts here and now then. It is my first visit to Vietnam, a communist country. Since I am back already, work is not in mind. Just some normal negotiations, discussions and market surveys. Rather, what is important in this trip are the things I saw and experienced.

Third world country ? Not so developed ? Not the case with Ho Chi Minh City, or also known by their more sophisticated and to me, a more developed name...SAIGON. Sounds like some pretty futuristic city name but, this name was used back when I was reading Sejarah in secondary school...hahaha... anyways, Vietnam is not as 3rd World as most thought... they have... what we have... See... not that far away from us actually... no... I think they are way more ahead of us... we just only launched the iPhone in Malaysia... look at this ad board... its OLD... hmmmm....
The hotels are pretty nice too... The one we spent out nights in was MAY Hotel... I have always been fascinated to see the wire cables in Vietnam... Through pictures, they look like a wireman's worst nightmare... seeing it in person, i too agree... I stood outside the hotel alone, looking at the wires and wondered... if there was something wrong with the electricity somewhere, how on earth will they know which cable is the problem? These cables are really a sore to the eye... and this man, I wonder how he is able to remain calm looking at them... for me, I think I will freak out if you asked me to climb up and fix a problem... The very artistic work of Vietnamese Tenaga National...and Telekom I think... most prob both cables are together... Next, the must go place in Ho Chi Minh... The Ben Thanh Market... Something like our central market combined with Petaling Street... its like a huge one storey building, with food and handicrafts inside...

Bargaining skills is a must in this place... and dont even think of lying to them about another stall selling cheaper... why? because they have all agreed that thee is a certain amount that they will not go below... therefore, cheating is a NO NO... all you can do is push it as low as possible... push to their limits... the funny thing is, we actually pushed the price so low that the fella actually gave up and asked us to leave... we did just that and went to other stalls that has the similar items and bargained again... when the final result was the first seller giving the lowest, we head back there and you can see that LANSI look of his, knowing that we will buy from him... haha... but my dad being himself, he started bargaining again... hahaha... end result, we got the item at the price we wanted... so, BARGAIN your way to victory...

Currency used in Vietnam is the VND or Vietnam Dong... This, is how they look like... and its the amount that I am carrying around in my wallet... I have VND835,000. Whoa... damn rich eh... that was the first thing I thought... and immediately, I started to imagine what I could buy with those... my heart was jumping with joy... not knowing the exchange rate, I made a fool out of myself... let me give an example...
A bowl of this VERY DELICIOUS crab noodle and a mug of this ALSO VERY DELICIOUS Strawberry Coconut Drink each, multiply by 6 sets as there were 6 of us... VND650,000 GONE... damn... i then noticed that I am actually POOR... haihz... by the way... this restaurant, situated next to Ben Thanh... its delicious... so yeah... im broke... cant even afford the next meal...

Then, I experienced the great flood... its actually the raining season... and Vietnam being a Delta, it is surrounded by BIG rivers and swamps... in addition to that, they have the poorest drainage system... thus, 30 minutes of rain... everywhere is flooded...even shops were flooded... its like im suddenly in Thailand... riding a boat in a river with shops at the banks... pity those selling electrical goods as they were all anxiously pouring water out of their shops and every car that passes by creates a tiny wave that sends water back in... Many bikes stalled too... as waters were to deep that at some parts, half the bike was submerged... to make things worst, our taxi driver was actually a fucker... when the waters are deep and motorists are there either stranded or moving slowly, he accelerates, splashing them wet... altho already wet but to make them wetter than wet... he laughed as he did that... asshole...

Then finally, I saw this man below... there's a saying... "You'll never know unless you try"... thats what he did... as optimistic about business as he was... he actually towed his booth into the middle of the flooded street and... started doing business... didnt see any customers tho... but... he is OPTIMISTIC...

Then, we have the buildings in Vietnam... land is expensive... so, this design came up... THIN buildings... THIN and TALL Such buildings are almost everywhere...and most of them are actually houses instead of shops... at most, if im not wrong, a family will occupy one whole level, with I think, 2 rooms at most, and living hall will be combined with their kitchen...
Then there is also this... the ultimate mode of transportation... cheapest, most efficient, no jam... and its GREEN... this is a fella moving a cupboard... i even saw one on a bike, carrying with him the lamp posts we see at the side of the road... and one on a bike with 2 baskets of ducks on each side, a goat tied to the rear seat, 3 baskets of vege tied around the bike... the animals and vege, is like a barrier protecting him... unfortunately, my camera died and i cant snap it...

Finally, we have this building... at first look, its a jail... with the high walls, super high fences... the color... the look... the feel... and then... its actually a SCHOOL... We also bought this... its SHIT... Weasel is a creature... the black things in it are coffee beans... why do i say its shit? cos its the Weasel's shit... a weasel chooses the ripest coffee fruit... eats it... cant digest the seeds... SHITS it out... they pick it... process it... clean it... and we drink it... also, note that its actually VND63,000 per 100grams of this thing... its the most expensive coffee here... in simple terms, its RM12.60 per 100 grms... pay shit loads to drink shit... cool eh... and we bought 500 grms of shit... and we also enjoyed sipping it... smells and tastes good... hohoho... sounds damn wrong saying this abt shit...

August 21st, 2009

This marks the end of my 4D3N work + holiday trip to Ho Chi Minh city... the stay here is not too long... but the experiences were priceless... what I will remember most is the traffic... a ratio of 20 bikes to 1 car... the roads are PACKED... a 2 lane road, one lane is for the bikes... the distance of car to bike on a busy road is less than half a meter ALL THE TIME... even at cruising speed... such skills of the motorcyclists... also, the honking on the road... taking a 1 hour drive, u will hear 1 hour of honking... then there is the flood... and the market...and the food... enjoyed my time terribly well here... its finally time to leave then... and Vietnam did not let us leave in peace... The flight was first delayed... then when we were all in and ready to liftoff back to KL, the plane must stop as a passenger on board this plane from KL to Vietnam had fever so they have to disinfect the plane... so, we waited again... until finally, from a bright afternoon, we took off at the late night sky... oh... they have H1N1... thus, no photos of me on this blog because I look like a samurai... the whole time in Vietnam...

It Has Already Been...

2009-06-29T23:19:00.002+10:00

5 years already on June 26th 2009. Five years ago today, June 26th 2004, I was driving in my car, back then a Wira, with Suet Leng by my side... on this particular day, I had planned to asked her if I can be the lucky guy to hold her arms... I remember I did something really stupid to give myself time to gather my balls together to make my move... From KL, I drove to MRR2, headed towards and past Batu Caves, then on to Kepong joining back at One Utama before reaching Eastin Hotel and on to the old military airport before finally reaching Taman Desa and to somewhere near Happy Garden (somewhere near there... I do not know the name of the place...). Upon reaching the place that we had planned for dinner, we stopped at a traffic light... I was thinking of this one action all the time while driving here... Long ago, I once told her that when she is ready to accept me, I will have my hands out all the time and she can hold on to it once she is ready... so that was what I did... THEN.... "'-_- ... i held out my hands and she replied "wat?"... hahahaha... that was the one thing that I will never ever forget... the most FISH (embarassing) thing that has ever happened... then to break from being cool, I have to tell her about what I said about my hands always ready for her to hold... only then did she finally laughed and held my hands... so, it began, June 26 2004, around 8pm, at a traffic light, in my Wira and our first meal as a couple at a foodcourt...

Five years later today, June 26th 2009, I am still very fortunate to be holding the same hands... This journey has not been particularly easy... as is for every other relationship by everyone out there I assume... arguements are for sure to happen... and in our case, its always me who causes and starts an arguement... therefore, I must say that I am really lucky that I am still in this relationship...

So, what did we do today... we both took leave today (Friday June 26th) to be together... First stop, BANGSAR shopping spree... need not list down what we bought and how much we spent though... conclusion is, we left Bangsar smiling...
Next stop, Solaris Mont Kiara for Korean BBQ at Bonga Korean BBQ Restaurant... food, service, environment and time spent together, priceless... Next stop, my turn to shop...DVD animes at one of the stores at Solaris before finally making our last entertainment to round up a perfectly well spent and memorable 5 year celebration, none other than making our way to Sunway Pyramid to catch the latest mega movie, Transformers 2...

..... wonder how many more 5 years can we celebrate... lets just hope that I do not screw up a perfectly fine relationship :p

Valentines Day Itself

2009-02-16T14:23:00.004+11:00

It's Valentines Day.

Another working Saturday in which I hoped so much that time would past faster, not because I am 100% excited that it is actually the day to celebrate love but because it's a day that I can actually spend time with my B. Every Saturday is a day that I look forward to very much as it is the only time that I am certain that there is time for us both together. Valentines Day or not, everyday is Valentines if couples are really in love. That's what I think actually. It doesnt only mean that Valentines is the only day that simbolizes love.

The day was spent in a very relaxing manner. Spending time together alone watching movie and just plain private time between the two of us. No distractions, no interuptions, just the two of us. That's what it is all about. The quality time spent.

Then came night where people all rush out to celebrate this somewhat "extra" meaningful day. We drove to KL, heading towards Pavilion for dinner, only to find out that the lousy new radio station One.FM is actually having their screwed up concert on Valentines Day. Screwed up I say, is because they actually made it like it was New Year's Eve, having a huge concert in the middle of Bukit Bintang, blocking traffic from entering that road and yes, causing a TERRIBLE jam. Cars that have been queing up in the jam for so long finally finds themselves having to take a detour and use another road once they reach Bukit Bintang. WHY? Because of that stupid concert. To make things worst, there are police officers standing there directing traffic but they do nothing about those people who took the opportunity to park at the roadside to go for the concert, causing the already screwed up jam to be even worst. I do not think that there is a single summon issued that night for those cars that parked at the roadside. This resulted in a very short journey to Pavilion becoming a seriously long drive.

For the entire week, I was planning for a dinner at Michelangelos. Knowing that the restaurant is most of the time very empty, I did not make an effort in booking for a table but luck was as bad as the traffic when we found out that the place was actually fully booked. So, second option, Kampachi (Japanese Food).

Dinner was great, food was good, ambiance just the way we wanted and there goes our Valentine's Dinner. This dinner was very satisfying because the prices were not increased like most restaurants would. The night ended nicely, going home with a satisfied stomach with loads of "fresh" meat.

Valentine's Day

2009-02-13T15:10:00.003+11:00

Every year now, February 14th is marked as Valentine's Day where lovers (usually guys) have to think of nice places to bring their girlfriend or wife to for a romantic dinner and in most cases also prepare presents for them as a sign of romance and showing them that they are loved by us. I personally do not go against this tradition but, why?

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor's daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today.

If Valentine's Day is really to show love to our partners and also as a rememberence to the guy who started this lovely day, why aren't restaurants showing us some love?

Today, a meal at some fancy restaurant with great food, nice ambiance and great price will cost us an average of maybe around RM70 per pax. Then the next day, which is Valentines, they can happily come up with a VALENTINE'S SET MEAL and then name is something funky like Lover's Delight, Happily Ever After or shits like that, with maybe the same dish that you ate yesterday at RM70 per pax and price it at RM100 per pax. Ridiculous...

Another example, a stalk of rose today might cost no more than RM5 per stalk... I dont know the exact because I do not buy flowers and a bouquet might cost around RM70 I think BUT, the very next day, on Valentine's Day, the same shit, maybe with one or two cute little toy bear on it or an extra chocolate shaped flower on it will cost you a whoping RM200.

My conclusion is, I love my girlfriend. I love the fact that I can celebrate Valentine's Day while some unfortunate or unlucky souls cant but I have to admit I DO NOT LOVE restaurants and florists that comes out with their funky set meals and special bouquets because of one reason and one reason alone. They too LOVE something. Our cash.

Happy Valentine's Day to all.

Again, I am not a cheap guy who cant afford a Valentine's meal.

Nice to Not So Nice

2009-01-13T13:17:00.004+11:00

F1 has changed dramatically...Performance wise, budget wise and now, the LOOK...From nice to not so nice...

Ferarri F2008 (challenger for 2008 season)

Ferarri F60 (challenger for 2009 seas0n)

Christmas...S'pore...

2009-01-02T20:14:00.016+11:00

After more than a year planning for this, the day finally came when both B and I took a 5 hour bus ride to the little island below our country... it is so small that we can basically drive around every twist and turn of this island in less than a day... still, I have talked to many people who knows Singapore and not know Malaysia... hmmm...
This trip was not particularly easy on me... before even stepping foot into the island, right at the edge of it... where I can actually walk over, I got into some trouble... My passport is 5 months from expiry date...so, this Malaysia customs officer stopped me and told me to turn around, head home, get a new valid passport and come again. After much persuasion, it's done. He first told me to see his head officer and then later on, clicked 2 buttons on the computer screen and we were both off to the toilet to settle the "deed" that he has done for me... pretty cool heh... passport not too valid... talk talk...click click...settle settle... and I'm through... the powers of the almighty click of the Malaysian customs officer... guess things aren't going as planned... but, holiday comes first...

Spending Christmas in Singapore is something new and the fact that we are staying in a high rise apartment rather than a hotel makes the experience greater. We stayed in Na's place at Upper Changi Road. Although it looks like any ordinary flat buildings in Malaysia but each floor has only 4 houses, meaning that each house is actually very spacious. Much more spacious that all the flats that we have in Malaysia. It is like a big apartment but with more than 20 floors instead of the average of 5 in Malaysia.
Also in Singapore is the first time I have boarded the MRT so many times other than when I was in Melbourne. In Malaysia, I go everywhere in my car mainly because transportation really sucked in Malaysia and not every place is connected via public transport. Buses are late, taxi doesn't take us where we want to go and if they do, they do not follow the meter. Ah Malaysia...
Being in Singapore is somehow like Malaysia in the sense that other than shopping, all we can really do is EAT. First day alone, it was an eating fest. Upon arrival, we went for their famous Hainan Chicken Rice... then right after that, we went to Queensway Mall to search for my shoes as this is the only place I will go to find some limited edition shoes. Anyways, I found what I wanted but there were no sizes left so we continued walking in search of it from other stalls. We stopped for desert then again stopped for this deep fried Mars bar balls as below. Eat eat eat... then we went home to change and off again to Na's aunt's place for food again. She cooked for 10 when there were only 8 of us. So, we were forced to fill our stomachs. Right after that, the normal human being will head home to rest as it was getting late BUT instead of doing that, we went straight to The CHEESECAKE CAFE to eat CHEESECAKE.. and it not not just one slice but SEVERAL SLICES... hohohoho...
It took the whole of the 3 days that we were in Singapore to shop for my shoes. I think I have visited almost every Limited Edition shops in Singapore till finally, I got if from one in Peninsula Mall. That, ended our shopping spree finally. Many plans were canceled, not 100% because to get my shoes but partly because of it as well. I'm just thankful that everyone there had the patience to follow around just to get my pair of shoes. Right after that, it was truly to visit Singapore. How to say that I have been to Singapore without having a picture with this Lion-Fish-like creature that spits water into the ocean...

Of cause below are the pictures of the place that we went for Cheesecake. Nice atmosphere and ambiance. Nice cakes and definitely loads of fats.

Na and Brendon
B and Myself
The cake, the cake and the cake
Another plan failed because the day before, this giant wheel got on fire and people were stranded. So, its CLOSED for the time being.

What can I do other than taking snapshots of it. Proves I have been there right...

Singapore's very own thematic restaurant.

All in all, this trip to Singapore was nothing speical. We did not stick to our planned schedule but, a trip is fun no matter where you go or what you do. What makes an outing really fun is actually who you are with. This trip, we do not see many fun stuff. In fact there were several disappointments. The Singapore Eye was closed, we did not enter Sentosa, we did not visit the Night Safari. Main attractions were all X'ed from the plan but, we did try something really fun. Walking on foot along Geylang road at night, walking amongst the prostitutes. THAT was an experience. We were introduced to the prostitution world by Brendon. We saw those without lisence and also those with lisences known to be found in places called the Fish Tank. The funny thing was, when Brendon asked me to follow him into one of the Fish Tanks to see how someone actually chooses a prostitute there, the pimp asked us to leave. I think he knows that we are not serious customers as there were 2 females (B n Na) outside waiting for us. Even so, I caught a glimpse. They were actually like those Miss Universe peagent. They had numbers stuck to them and the customers will walk in, have a look at them and pick whichever number he likes best. Hmmm... not a bad way to do business eh. Something like a football team. We know people by numbers.

This trip actually brought many new experiences for me. Mainly because it was only my second time in Singapore and the first time actually really touring Singapore. Maybe in future, I will go again and visit places that I missed this time around .

New...New...all New!!

2008-12-13T12:56:00.003+11:00

20 years in the same apartment, sharing a room with my brother for as long as I remembered, finally drew to an end...

Now, starting a new life in a new house in a new area with my new room, I find things actually not as different as before... people who knew that I shared a room before, kept asking me if it was fun having my own room and all...all I felt was... yeah... i got my own room and its a new house... so what? to me everything remains the same... most importantly enough, it does not make me and my brother any more distant than we were... we might be sleeping in individual rooms now but that did not make us isolate each other more... so I guess, this new house and new room thing doesnt really affect me in any ways... only thing different is that I have my own, bigger bigger bed to roll around at night...hahaha...and of cause, more privacy... privacy, whatever you guys are thinking about, its not what you think it is...

Anyways, since moving here, things are definitely new...and, I added a few new things to my personal collection as well... first off, a brand new Tissot Limited Edition GP watch... what drew me to this watch is the fact that it is simple and nice... and also, the helmet design packaging played a big role in me making my decision... hahaha... although the packaging is of no use other than a decorative item but, it still played a role in my decision making...

Then, another thing to my collection... not mine exactly... its shared by the whole family but the owner is ME... finally, I have my own pet... a 4 year old Dalmation named Jill that I adopted from an old couple who were to migrate to Auckland...

It's odd... she came to the house and got along with Aibo in less than 15 minutes... can dogs really be friends that easily or is it because both dogs are just super friendly and can connect easily... Jill is quiet and playful and the other pig Aibo is just plain friendly...so, this is our rojak pet collection... 2 dogs of different breeds and size and color and ear shape and height and weight and sex and this and that and everything...

What other new things await me? hmmmm....

The New Shelter for a Changing Lonely Guy

2008-11-07T13:48:00.004+11:00

After a long 23years wait, I finally got my own room. A place where I can lay in peace. A place where I can do whatever I wanted and not be disturbed. A place where I can put whatever I want in and not care what other people thinks of it. A place I can seek refuge from all the things happening in the outside world, keeping myself in and locked behind the big wooden door, in my blanket, blinds put down and lights turned out.

I grew up previously in 2 houses. First few years of my life spent in a landed house in Taman Shamelin and then the next 20 years in Jasmine Court. A place I consider my first home actually. A place where I grew up, went through all the ups and downs of life, and most importantly, a place where I stayed when I began schooling, from kindergarten to primary. Then on to secondary and a diploma holder then now a degree holder. The first part of my life, is spent in this house. A house filled with memories, both sweet and sour, both happy and sad and of cause scary (judging by what I heard before I go to sleep, what I saw occassionally and what I felt walking alone at night). All this, happened in this very house when I was growing up into and out of my teenage life. I can roughly sum up that the happiest and saddest part of me growing up onto who I am today all happened in this house.
This house, standing solid for 20 odd years, has seen many changes happening around it and still standing tall and strong. From a damp and muddy little pathway on the right side of this apartment, being cleared to make way for Makro and now Tesco, to a jungle full of monkeys and birds being cleared to make way to what is now, the Kesas-MRR2 highway that leads me to the foot of Genting in less than an hour.
Now, almost 20 years after I first set foot into this apartment, on October 9th, 2008, I helped move furnitures down the stairs for the last time. Into our office lorry, and off we went, to a place to start the next chapter of my life. A place although further from where I stay now but much bigger and most importantly, like I said earlier, I have my own room, after 23 years. Let's just see what this new house has in store for me. I know for a fact though, I am a happier person now. Not because of the room though, maybe because of the new environment, the new change in my life and hopefully, this time around, I can again, be the happy one that I used to be.

Me...is not Me

2008-09-25T13:10:00.000+10:00

I started off my life as someone who is very quiet and never talked much. For the first 10 years of my life I think, I am someone people will call a loner. Everything and everything is to myself and it is as though I have a world of my own and am reluctant to leave that world.

It then came to a stage in life where I started to mix around. I think it was when I was 15years old. The year that I was sitting for my PMR examinations in Form3. At that time, I turned into someone else. I became more friendly and mixed around more. I am someone who is always happy and always cheerful in school and from that time on, I had more and more friends. Even those that I did not mix with much in school became my friends and everything worked out real well i guess. It all lasted till I was in my final year of my secondary school life that is in Form5.

When I was in Form5, there was again changes in me. I am still, I think, friendly and cheerful as always but then one additional thing to that is that I also start to venture into the naughtier side of me. I was flirting a lot and also I began to smoke. This of cause led to me not concentrating in my studies and focused more on having fun and making everything in my life fun. As a result, I guess I screwed up my SPM.

The next step of my life came and I was in Pre-U at Sunway College, studying in CIMP (Canadian International Matriculation Program). Bringing what was me in Form5 into college, I still made loads of friends and I still smoked and yes, studying was still my main problem. But then one thing started to change dramatically. My attitude went from cherishing those close to me to "fuck off I dont need you anymore". On my first semester in CIMP, I had a bunch of good friends and when it came to the second semester, I mixed with a new group of friends and strangely enough, I no longer keep in touch with those friends I knew from first semester, needless to say, even those from high school, people whom I have knew since I was 6 years old, all of them, I cut my contact with. I seriously do not know why I am changing like that but that is me at that point of time. With those that I met in the second semester, I even built up my temper. I am no longer the calm guy who lets everything just pass me like that and not taking notice of anything. I turned into someone violent and got into trouble and fights numerous times.

Again, a new step in life was when I surprisingly made it into Monash University. Similarly to the past, I cut contact with those that I knew in Pre-U and here is where I made a new bunch of friends whom fortunately enough until today, I still keep in touch with 3 of them. They are Lowekor, Gareekor and of cause my B. it was at this moment in life too that my life took another huge change. Everything changed. I changed into who I am now. I was before that making loads of friends and hanging out alot and also one that talks alot.

Now, I have again changed back into square one. It is a very drastic change in me. Once again, I became a loner. I do not mix around and I do not even want to make new friends. What's worst, I still cut contact with the limited number of friends that I have and like I said earlier, now I am only left with 3 people in my life. My B, Lowe and Gary. I no longer find myself able to crack up jokes, I cant talk alot and I have basically nothing to say about anything. This of cause is hurting my relationship with B because I know that I am not who she first fell in love with at first. At that time, I am always cheerful and laughed alot. I talked alot and crack up alot of jokes. Now, all I am is a silent soul. A loner who does not mix around and who does not like to talk. I am finding it very difficult to make friends and also very difficult to just do the simplest thing, that is to talk.

What will happen next? I seriously do not know.

Aim...Lock...Fire!!!!!

2008-08-13T16:07:00.004+10:00

August 10th, I organized a paintball match for our company and our subsidiary company. The organizing process was hectic as people were always uncertain of whether they want to play or not, some are afraid of the bruises and some are just a plain pain in the ass when it comes to simple decision making of whether to go or not...
The game proceeded nonetheless, at Xtion Paintball Park Bkt Jalil... a total of 26 of us went and it was some hell of a good game... the day started with some light drizzle and when it was game time, she sun came out and the fun began...
Charles and I being the only players with paintball experience on the field, we somehow made this game a success for our team. I'm the captain of Team A and of all 6 rounds, we won all 6. HAHAHAHA... and I think I am the one player who shot almost every single player in Team B... having the highest kill I guess, and, most importantly, I did not get shot... hehehe...

A 2 hour game and we used up a total of over 4000 pallets in this game... rounding up to about RM70++ per player... not a high price to pay, considering I get to shoot the General Manager, the Director and the Chairman of the company... =)

Below are those who attended the game... players from Young Master and ESPD... see the guy in pink at the far left... he was the sad one... the game ends with what we call shoot till ur dead... meaning we shoot till we ran out of bullet... so, this guy was one of the few who finished his pallets first... and as a rule, guys do not wear vests... so as he was leaving, I gave him one last shot on his back... the pallet bursting on his back sent me laughing till I almost teared...hahaha... guess his back will always have a mark... thanks to ME...

My Ass is More Anti-Rasuah

2008-07-28T17:14:00.004+10:00

The Malaysian Police Force has pride themselves to being anti-rasuah... which means anti-corruption... that would have been nice... and me being a good citizen that I am, I do not wish to bribe them for I wouldn't want to end up in the lockup with them deflowering my ass like most stories that I have heard from people who has experienced being there...

So, why am I writing this post? Two days ago (July 26 2008), I was on my way to Breakers in Hartamas with B and unfortunately for me, I was speeding...at quite a considerable speed and that's when I saw what most speeders hate to see most... a road-block... i knew at that point of time that... I... am... screwed... the police, holding a red flag, directed me to the side of the road where a very cheerful policeman guided me to park nicely at the side of the road... guess I should have given him a tip for teaching me how to park my car... hmmm... anyways, here's the conversation that I had with the nice policeman whom I guess on that day, had a nice time with his wife on bed early in the morning before coming out to the streets looking for some side income...

The following conversation is translated to ENGLISH...

Police (with a fucking big smile on his face) : Good afternoon sir... where are you going?

Me: Im going to Hartamas

Police (still with that grin): Do you know you are speeding?

Me: Yes

Police: Why?

Me: Im in a hurry

Police (again with the smile): So I will give you a ticket ya.

Me: OK

Police (suddenly more cheerful than ever, looking like an angel sent down to help me) : want me to help you??

Me: How? If can sure.

Police: How do you want me to help you?

Me: I dont know. How do you want to help me?

Police (BIG ASS SMILE and FUCKING BIG APPETITE): Give me RM100

Me: Wah, so much? I dont have so much. Just give me the ticket.

Police: Its not much. You give me RM100, you save RM200 because the ticket is RM300

Me (hiding all the cash in my wallet): I only got RM35. Give me the ticket le.

Police: Ooh... then give me RM30

Me: If I give you that then what can I do with RM5? Just give me the ticket.
(take note, I keep asking for the ticket. Im a good citizen)

Police: Then how much can you give me?

Me: I dont know. I got no money. Just give me the ticket

The police then walks to the front of my car, wanting to write the details down and give me the ticket... and his face was darker than my dog's crap... then came back me, without writing me a ticket and said.

Police: Go...I will post you the ticket.

And so, I left a happy man... not getting the ticket and not having to pay for his lavish lunch if I paid him cash.... i doubt that I will get the ticket too... writing me one will take 5 minutes and with that 5 minutes he could have received some bribe from other drivers... lol... so, im a good citizen... i asked for the ticket... he is a bad police... he asked me to bribe...

Anti-Rasuah? hohohoh...

eh... im sorry... i think i was wrong... police in Malaysia is really anti-rasuah... thats when they have that badge on... that police, i think he was off duty from anti-rasuah... coz he wasnt wearing the badge... hmmm...

Mudtrekker Paintball

2008-05-26T11:33:00.005+10:00

Yesterday (25th May 2008), I organized a paintball game because both Suet Leng and myself wanted to play this game for a long time already. Therefore I searched the web for the nicest place available and I came across this gaming arena called the Mudtrekker Adventure Park. This park not only hosts adventure games like hiking, camping and survival camps but also the games that I most wanted to play that is paintball and ATV. This time around, it would be paintball and the next time it might be ATV.7.30am I woke up, got ready and woke the whole world. A total of 14 people will be playing and it was quite a sight, seeing 7 cars, lead by myself, driving from the city into the remote areas of Kuang Selangor to this place. It was a surprise though how B and myself found the route to this place as the map really wasn't of much help.
So, the game begins... we were terribly shocked when we arrived there... 14 noobs walking into the safe area, looking at a whole bunch of PROs getting ready for their battle... what we were wearing was just plain normal jeans and T-shirts and nothing more... but them, they had luggages with them... all equiped with full camouflage attires, personal masks, belts full of accessories to carry extra pallets and equipments to clean their markers and of coz, personal and customized markers... what we have again... NOTHING... we will be using the park's home masks which are those below and their home markers which looks cool to us noobs and shoots one pallet each time... theirs are markers different from the rest... some are machine guns which shoots numerous pallets at each trigger and some are snipers... for a moment there, we were all stunned looking at them and questioned each other if we were playing with them... if we were, i am sure i will rent 2 layers of protective gears...
This marker below is something like what they are using... the pros...not us...
These markers in huge quantities lying there... these are the ones we will be using...simple markers...less power, less pallets to hold and of coz for the less skilled... hahahaha...Below are the gagaks (crows)...really no idea why we came out with this name... its myself, Suet Leng, Gary and Lowe... this name came out during our previous planned outing to murder one gal...and thus this name has become our official name... lol...Lowe and Gary fully equipped to kill... or to be killed...wearing these camo suits made us feel a little bit more pro than the rest of our group but are we? I think we are though... i shot 4 people... hahahaha... and did not get shot at all...hohohoho... nice...
My other group member... Charles my elder bro and his gf Vicky...
My youngest bro Greg who is also my group member who unfortunately enough got shot 6 times...hahahahaha... and this below is him showing his most brutal shot received...
All in all, it was a great game... although the time wasn't enough but I guess everyone had fun... so all the work of browsing through the net, making arrangement, calling the park numerous times and looking for the place was all worth it... next time, it would be the All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) game...

... ... ...

2008-05-08T16:13:00.004+10:00

Many things happened lately...
First of all, it's the departure of 2 of our office staffs... one from the accounts department and the other who handled the brands DKNY, 2(x)ist and Calvin Klein... personally, I am not close to the accounts gal but then I worked together with the one handling Calvin Klein for 3 months in our effort to clear off all our Calvin Klein stocks... it's been a really exciting 3 months and I learned a lot of things from her...and of coz we did managed to clear off more than we eventually targeted...
CK gal is the one in green in the middle whereas the accounts gal is the one in white dress with black stripes beside her... they are the ones leaving...

Anyways, I may not be close to them but knowing that staffs are leaving is really something different... it's that sort of feeling that the office has less noise and all... it's just different from before... wonder if new people who come in will balance it again...

In my first year alone till now, a total of 6 people has left the company... and the bunch of designers whom I am closest to in the office, there is one that is deciding to leave and another who will leave if there is a better offer... wonder what is actually wrong in this company... its not that they are not treated nicely or anything... i think this is one of the few companies around where the subordinates can actually call the boss by name and joke around with the boss... the atmosphere in the office is actually not that tensed... but, still people are leaving.. it's really weird...

what else... hmm... proud to say that my continuous exercise has lost me some weight... at least i did something good for once... losing those extra pounds... but of coz the amount lost is not enough... it's hard to actually reach my target weight... really wonder why... many people say I do not look as heavy as I really am... but WHY AM I SO HEAVY??? damn it...

Ok enuf of crap... back to work... adi took 10 minutes of my working time to write this crap... haha

Singapore Fashion Festival 2008

2008-04-08T12:15:00.008+10:00

It's April 3rd, 2008 and i am headed off to Singapore with 4 designers for the Singapore Fashion Festival 2008 where our company there in Singapore, Vizon , has taken part in this SEX-Y in the City Men's Underwear show for Singapore Fashion Festival 2008 and has also invited world renowned male model Marcus Schenkenberg who once was a model for CK Underwear and also Versace...
This, will also be my first official trip to Singapore in 23 years other than that one time when i stopped at Changi Airport for my transit flight to Australia... lol... Singapore at first glance, is a really beautiful country...everything there seems very organized and in order... even the trees are planted beautifully and the whole city is actually very green... comfortable to live in and it somehow reminds me of Australia...For this trip, I came a day earlier with 4 designers to do some market survey... aka SHOPPING and also to look at the market conditions and what people here wears... what sells and what does not...
Picture below are Feon, Chin Yee, Myself, Frank and Stewart... 4 designers that i came with...
The extra day that we have here in Singapore doesn't really gives us the advantage of really exploring Singapore... this is because we do not have a car here and all of us do not know where to go... at least one thing that's good is that we actually visited 2 of the famous places in Singapore that is Orchard Road and Geylang (red-light district)... kekek... to Geylang for food ya... not for prostitutes...
So here i am... in Singapore, outside Takashimaya Shopping Centre where the fashion show will take place in a massive tent built right beside it...
The only free time that i only had was to hop onto cab, pay S$6.50 to Queensway Shopping Centre to get myself a pair of shoe... shoes there are really cheap... and this i bought for only S$170... LIMITED EDITION Adidas O-Type...
OK... set and ready then for the Fashion Show... Our theme for this fashion show is SEX-Y in the City Men's Underwear...

Here, are some pics of the models strutting out their awesome body and our awesome products... lol...

This last model here is Marcus Schenkenberg... he's adi 39yrs old but look at that body...

After this event, it's off to our Event After Party at Zouk...
One thing really cool about Singapore clubs is that the air inside in surprisingly nice... what i mean is that i do not smell any smoke in there... was pretty surprised when i found out that clubs are NO SMOKING area... COOL eh... smokers, GATHER OUTSIDE PLS... lol...Party comes to an end for me at 1.30am... too tired to continue with the rest of them... so i came back to the hotel but before that, the last piece of fun that i had... was a picture with the model Marcus Schenkenberg himself... haha... know press people and other models as well as ppl who know him will die to get a pic with him so, here is one of me and him...

21/03/08 -Penang 2nd Day

2008-04-01T12:12:00.004+11:00

The second day in Penang started off pretty well... awake from a hangover the night before, i went for breakfast with everyone and then Louise, B and I took a long walk from our hotel, along Gurney beach to another hotel called the G Hotel which is about 15 minutes walking distance just to see how the building looks like inside... lol...Along the way, the tide is low, sea birds gather and the weather... HOT AS HELL...Today, we also went to the famous tourism spot Kek Lok Si Temple... this will be the second time coming here and yes, the pain and suffering that I experienced today while hiking up the steps to the temple was the same thing i experienced a few years ago when i first stepped foot onto this stairway...what can i say... either i have not gained weight for the past few years as the pain was the same, or i have not grown stronger because the pain is still the same... lol... i opt for not being fatter then... makes me happier...
Anyways, halfway to the top, there is this place for us to rest and do some good... that is paying RM1 to the aunty there for a bunch of vege... this gives her business... thats good... and with that vege, we feed these turtles... that... also good... 2 good deeds at the same time... im surely going to heaven...

And YES... finally... the temple... and...major geram... reached the temple only we saw that there was a parking lot there... meaning... we can actually drive up and park there... no need to walk all the way... haihz...

The day was unexpectedly hot despite the gloomy conditions... and i was sweating like a pig all the time... and just when i tot that climbing stairs has ended, they all decided to climb the pagoda...stairs...again...Below is B on the top floor of the pagoda overlooking Penang...
OKIE... done with Kek Lok Si... on with food... first, Asam Laksa... in a filthy area...flies more than people there... but wasnt bad... then back to try the famous Char Kuay Teow from the fella who wears goggles when he cooks... then again to try this Ice Kacang... with ice cream and fruits...
The eating didnt stop here though... we went back to the hotel, swam, had our food digested... and off again to Gurney Drive for food food food and Food...that, finally, ends our day, with another round of food in the hotel room... =) what a bloody fat trip...

20/03/08-Penang 1st Day

2008-03-26T13:11:00.009+11:00

Supposedly i have planned on a trip alone with B to Langkawi on this date itself but then her colleagues too came up with a trip to Penang so, my plan out, their plan in... it has been some time since i have been on a trip with B so wherever the location and whoever the company, it doesn't really matter that much to me...

10.45am, Eugene, Karen and B came to pick me up at my place and the journey begins, first to the rest area in Sg Buloh for breakfast and to meet up with the other group which consists of Edmund, Michelle, Kevin and Louise...

Our first destination will be Ipoh for lunch but this supposedly 2 hours journey to Ipoh took longer than expected because the very smart Malaysian government decided to have their highway maintenance work done in the noon and at different stretch of the highway causing a massive crawl... pretty dumb... and when we reach Ipoh, we headed straight to the all famous Onn Kee Restaurant for their Tauge Chicken... yum yum yum... and to show how good their food is and how famous they are, they have pictures of celebrities eating there posted all over the walls in their restaurant...

This trip has 2 reasons only... EAT... and DRINK... so, it all begins in Ipoh... after this delicious meal, we walked 2 streets down to this... Funny MountainTau Fu Fa... the size of the shop is exactly the size of the yellow canopy below... it is very small and can fit 4 person at most in their shop...
So, we gotta sit outside the shop to enjoy... this little shop may look run down and small... but this thing is seriously good... in KL we have people lining up to buy food...or do they actually line up? but anyways... this particular shop is like a Tau Fu Fa Drive Thru... cars are actually lining up to buy this fella's Tau Fu Fa... this, plus with the chicken rice, gives extra evidence now that good food are always found in lousy areas... YUMM YUMM....
So, we continue on our journey in search for good good food... and, its another long and boring journey up North... till finally, i see this thing ahead of me... the Penang Bridge toll plaza...
and this... the Penang bridge... finally, i'm here... the land for good good food... grrr.... stomach revving... gearing up to store food...hohohoho....
Zoom Zoom Zoom... off to out hotel... Gurney Hotel on Gurney Street... look at the height of this thing... and the width... it's not like any hotels in KL... hotels here all look like that... very tall and slim... this is mainly because the land is small and there is no room for glamor big ass hotels... all are average in width but very very tall... this, has 36 floors... There is nothing really special to highlight about this hotel... everything is standard... rooms, beds and all but then, one thing that caught my attention is the swimming pool... it's located on the 7th floor and, look, when we swim to the other end, everyone can just jump and commit suicide...
This place is great... it has all the basic necessities like swimming pool, pool tables, gym and table tennis... but here, they also have archery and beach volleyball, all on the 7th floor...

Up next, eating begins... drove to this restaurant by beach...
Didn't snap any pictures of the food but here is where we have our seafood... loads of seafood... and coconuts and beers... exactly what a great feast needs... fresh seafood, great taste, good price...
Right after our seafood dinner, we went for a drink... first to this magnificent bar... but unfortunately, they close at 11pm and we were there at 10.30pm... so we decided to go elsewhere...Next destination, after walking to 15minutes, we came to SOHO Free House Penang Bar... it's just like any other typical bars around... loud music, lots of smokers, pool tables and beers...This, my drink for the night... not Guinness Draught though... it's some other type of beer... not found in KL i think...and sadly i have forgotten what it's called...tastes surprisingly better than Tiger or Heineken... After all this, it's back to our hotel for our drinking session again... once again, lots of liquor and junk food and card games... 3am... sleep...

...

2008-03-14T13:25:00.002+11:00

Every single day, thousands of people die around the world... many from sickness and of age... but then in Malaysia, everyday, many people die because they are stupid...

Since young, my mom, brother and myself has this gift or maybe it is an unfortunate gift that we can sometimes see the dead... there has been many many occasions where i see "them" loitering around but one thing that I am glad is that "they" had no intention in hurting me... if they were to make simple movements or actions when they notice that i can see them, I might not already be here... LOL...

Anyways, nowadays i think i am developing a new form of sight... i am always seeing accidents and there are a few that ended up in death... i not only see accidents after it has happened... like we Malaysians always do... but there has been so many occasions this past 2 years where i see accidents happen right in front of my eyes...

Take yesterday for example (13th March 2008)... I was driving home from gym and then, i see this innocent motorcyclist minding his own business, cutting in and out of lanes, speeding happily without noticing the cars around him... then as he neared me, he continued cutting lanes and i heard a loud bang all of a sudden... cars screeched to a halt... so did i and unfortunately enough, i ended up stopping my car next to a van...the van that knocked that innocent speeding guy who was minding his own business and not looking at cars around... there he lay, on the road motionless... his bike, under the van... the impact sent him flying a few meters ahead and landing straight on his back... i was stunned... not knowing if he was alive... i looked at the van driver... this chinese man in his 40's was as stunned as i was... maybe even more... but was it his fault? i dont think so... then again, even if it wasnt his fault, he might already have killed a man... and that will haunt him for the rest of his life... and myself, i drove home, hands shaking and can't get the image of that man on the road out of my head... as i drove past the body, i looked again at it... still motionless...

Why so many motorists die in Malaysia? it's because of themselves... i have no pity for the dead body actually... i pity the ones hitting him even more... because those are the real unfortunate people... Malaysian motorcyclists think that they invulnerable... they speed, cutting lanes and really expect cars to give way to them... and so, if an accident was to happen, serve them right... go to hell... fucking motorcyclists... this, is what they like to do, in groups of around 30 - 40 in the middle of the night...

So, how can we be blamed if they ended up like this the very next moment...

I myself on a personal note, hate motorcyclists... ignorant fools... when the roads are jammed, and they can't get past, they try so desperately to squeeze themselves through in between of two cars and guess what, often enough they scratch ur car and what can u do abt it? nothing... cause ur stuck in the jam and they are happily squeezing their way through in front...

These gangs that perform those stunts at night, calls themselves Mat Rempit... and again, i have fallen victim to such people many times... in the middle of the night, they block the road... and i cant drive properly as they are occupying all the lanes on the road, leaving me stuck in between... i can't get past them because if i accidentally hit one, the rest will come for me... i must get past them because if they decide to come for me, its 40 to 1... still im dead... so, FUCK THEM ALL... if i could, i wish there is no law in this country and i am driving a tank so i can run over all of them... that i know, will make myself happy and many other drivers very happy...

Anyways, my point is, i dont pity motorcyclists who die in such accidents... but then pls die when im not near because i dont want to see them lying on the road... and whats more, they die and create a massive jam... then again that makes me pissed at u guys even more...

One funny picture that i found... even aboriginals are becoming Mat Rempits... LOL

... ... ...

2008-03-12T19:22:00.003+11:00

It's another one of those days where work is boring...
Sat around in the office minding my own business when i was asked to go to MV Gardens to check on some stuff...then the nice things starts to happen...

First, went to Kim Gary in MV... was there with 2 of my colleagues... first off, my colleague's lunch has a baby "siu keong" aka cockroach in it...and the bowl of mee was already half eaten... LOL... imagine how shock u'll be to find a baby cockroach in ur lunch... swimming around ur noodles... LOL... so, that bowl of noodles was FOC... and full of laughter... then there were this two tables in front of us and the two ladies seated back facing me were challenging each other, maybe wanting me to evaluate and grade their ass crack... let me rate it now...

Lady A
Pink underpants... showing ass crack...
Has a tribal tattoo... so far so good... then as we 3 observe more...
Our response was... WHAT THE *^%!(&%(#_*^!... underneath the tattoo, above the ass crack and surrounding the ass crack... it was a pimple plantation there...
So, result, 0/10

Lady B
Dress all black... underpants not visible but ass crack clearer than the afternoon sun...
Need not look further, she failed big time... -10/10
Reason, her ass was so big, it's dropping from the side of the chair and the back of the chair...
Enough to make me not being able to finish my lunch...

OK... that was lunch... so we went straight to MV Gardens... and there, another nice thing happened... i witness for the first time a promoter that i would dearly wanna slap... no matter what age she was... *she's in her late 40's* i guess...

First, went there, she's in the store room, counting stock... i was told before that she's the most untidy promoter of all promoters that we have... untidy in the sense of clothing... so there i was looking at her... she wears a white shirt, it's not ironed and she did not tuck in... leaving her belly so visible... and she is wearing cartoon socks... with slippers...
Dressing aside, she has manners problems as well... we were there to mark down which items we need them to keep for us... when we are almost done, she began walking out... for lunch... we asked her for a minute... she walked away saying that she needs to eat... WTF...

At the same place, the other guy promoters too have some quite funny sense of style... one of them, wears a super tight slack with almost rainbow colored shirt... on top of that, he is wearing a belt with a very BIG Mercedes buckle which is surrounded by fake diamonds... OMG... and whats more, when we were there, he was busy standing at the corner, playing with his pet... this thing... that he was playing with, extinct when i was in Form1 i think... this my friends, was his pet...
Hmmm... then after that, everything was normal lor... walk walk then i got to go to the loo quite badly... so i decided to go before i pay for my parking... and there, was the shock of my life... outside the toilet, there was this guy standing behind a rostrum... he was so well dressed... black suit, black tie, which collared shirt, slacks and nice leather shoes... WTF is he doing there? he is, standing there, collecting money from us who wishes to use his fabulously grand toilet... our entrance fee... RM5... GOSH... i told my bladder to hold on till i reach the office... and the parking was only RM1... i can park 5 times to enter his toilet once... imagine the conversation of him with his friends...

Friend: WAH... so gaya... suit and all... which international company are u working for? sure very well paid de la u...

HIM: Hehe... dun say like that la... im working in MV Gardens

Friend: WAH... high class complex... ur the complex manager ar?

HIM: YES... im the manager... in charge of the toilet...

LOL...

This Past Week

2008-03-07T12:27:00.001+11:00

This past few weeks, the world of electronics hates me... so badly...

Firstly, I finally decided to take exercising seriously and went for my first swimming session... then on this very day, it became one of the most expensive swimming session of my life as my handphone decided to go for a swim with me... the condition of my phone was so bad that it cannot be turned on and the screen was actually flooded... i could see water inside the screen itself... so, there goes my 1 1/2 year old phone (W 810i Sony Ericsson) which i got in Australia... and also there goes Rm1680 of my money as i have to replace the phone... for a few hours, I was disconnected from the telecommunications world... On the same day itself, I bought myself a new phone... a Sony Ericsson W 910i...

Then, the second disaster came... my office PC gave up on me... it would not detect the keyboard... and so, I could not do anything in the office and i am cut off from the cyberworld in the office... there is nothing i can do in the office because of that...

I resulted in using the computer at home to get myself connected to the cyberworld but then FUCK... the same problem happened to my personal home PC... and it is NEW... only 1 month old... immediately i brought it back to the ACER service centre to fix and there, after they played with it for a while, it worked... i took it home and happily used the PC until the next day when it gave up on me again for the same problem... so again i got disconnected from the internet world and i have to again, bring it back to the service centre to have the whole thing reformatted and lose everything that i have saved in the PC... haihz....

So, there goes my problems... 2 PC and a handphone... thats not it actually... then came my car... this past few weeks, it threatens to die on me... everytime i start the engine, it's as though the car is reluctant to start... afraid that another mechanical problem might happen, i sent it to the service centre immediately early this morning (10th March) for a full MAJOR service...

And after that, i had breakfast with my brother at Old Town Coffee Shop and again another near death for my new handphone... and for me... we left the place and my brother drove me to work where as we were about to reach the office, i noticed that i left my handphone there in the coffee shop... immediately my brother called my phone and they said that they kept it for me there... lucky for me this time around... i got my phone back and saved myself another RM1700 if i had to get another new phone... that would be a record for me...

So this month has been seriously a fucked up month... for me... electronically... haihz... cant wait to get this month out of the way... and hopefully next month will be a great one...

Year of the Rat

2008-02-12T17:36:00.000+11:00

I came back last year on the eve of CNY and now, its that time of the year again... only a year later... time flies faster than one can imagine... and work plays a big part in it... day in day out, i do the same thing... and every passing day doesn't seem to be noticed, unlike the time when I'm studying...

CNY was pretty ok for me this year... in the past, for me at least... every single year for the past many many years, has always been dull... other than taking a few ang paos from here and there on the first day of CNY, i will spend the remainder of my time at home...

This year it's a bit different because it is the first time that i actually went around to other people's place for open houses and also to gamble and talk... so much different from the past years and it's pretty fun... gambling was a major heart attack, specially when playing "in-between"...

Well, 4 days of holidays and here i am again, back at work...

Happy Chinese New Year to all... best wishes in this year of the rat...

Happy New Year 2008

2008-01-12T01:49:00.000+11:00

The year 2008 has arrived... to me, time really flies... fresh in my memories, i recall the time when i was in Australia and when thinking back, it has already been 2 years since the very first time i stepped foot on the Land Down Under... and that is year 2006...

2006 to me, passed just like that... the enjoyment and hype of going to Australia for my final year, experiencing something new, taking on new challenges in life and living a life away from my parents and everyone whom i knew dearly for the very first time... it all was so amazing and fun...
experienced so much, saw so much, felt so much and loved everything, every single bit of it so very much... yet again, time passes just like that and it was in Australia that i celebrated New Years Eve, awaiting year 2007...

2007... started off so badly... everyone, well, almost everyone, i think, will be happily looking up at the sky, seeing the magnificent display of fireworks lighting up the dark midnight sky... but that's not the case for me tho... well, thats because in Melbourne, we do not have any transportation of our own so all we did was watch everything on TV in the comfort of home... the very next morning, on the 1st day of 2007, i woke up with an sms on my cell phone from my mom, telling me that my grandma passed away early in the morning... such a disaster for me on the very first day of 2007...
what hurt me most was that, every single one of my grandma's family was there to escort her on her final journey... everyone... from her sibling, to her spouses, to her grandchildren and finally to her friends... they were all there paying their final respects and there i was, alone in Australia... her one and only grandson that did not attend her funeral...
2007 continued on... completing my summer course and came back to Malaysia just in time for Chinese New Year... then started working with my dad and halfway through in May, went over to Australia again for one of the biggest day of my life... GRADUATION
came back and continued working as usual... worked hard... really hard... i must show that i am not getting what i am getting because i am the son of the boss but because i can really work...
*poooof*... 2007 ends...
on the eve of 2008, i was at B's colleague's house to celebrate and await the arrival of 2008... on this day, i did not drink a single sip of alcohol in respect of my grandma's first year since she passed away.,.. how fast has time passed... with a blink of an eye, the fireworks of 2008 marks the 1 year mark since my grandma passed away...

2008... i hope that this year will be a better year for me... a year that i will really look back and say... "Hey... its not a bad year after all..."

-ReagaN.CHK-

The Truth of Cats having 9 lives!!!

2007-10-30T18:23:00.000+11:00

It was a cooling night on October 27, 2007... we spent the day watching 30 Days of Night which was a huge disappointment to me... was expecting some really good make-up and story line but... disappointing...
After that we drove around before stopping by for dinner at Old Town Coffee House and then later on to the night market at my area... after we parked our car, we went in search of a small kitten that we saw on the road side... we wanted to get it out of danger of cars driving around... was a really tiring process... both B and I had to squat and run from car to car, reaching our hands under the cars to get the kitten... it looks almost as tho we were trying to steal a car or put some damage to the car just so that the driver will be involved in an accident... worst, all this was done on cars parked outside houses with their front doors wide open and the living hall well lit...anyone would have saw what we were doing if they were to walk out cos i was there with my handphone lights on to look for the lil kitten... after almost 10 minutes of trying to get the lil rascal out, it ran into one of the houses... feeling that it would be safe, we head off to the night market...
Again, after the night market, we wanted to make sure that the kitty is safe... i bought some snacks and on the way to our car we saw the kitty again... so, determined this time to save it, i gave up one of my fish ball to lure the lil kitty... again we had to run and squat from car to car but this time, we made it... B actually caught the kitty... and it was obviously very annoyed wit us...
we walked to a back alley where we earlier spotted a few other kittens... hoping that they are sibling we put it there when disaster struck... once we left it there, a car moved out from its parking space and drove over the kitty... we were all... FUCK... B screwed the driver and demanded that he bring the kitty to a vet immediately where we tailed them in my car...
its really heartbreaking... we tried to save it from a car and ironically, it got ran over by a car once we left it somewhere we thought was safe...
when we reached, the vet was closed...all hopes sank but when the driver opened the door, lil kitty jumped out... he even managed to give the fella a nice car air freshener as payback as the lil kitty shit in his car...
well, we were all surprised... its again UNDER A CAR... and B managed to catch it again only to be bitten by the kitty numerous times... the man then took full responsibility and promised to bring the kitten to a vet the next morning... he drove off and i sped off to the nearest clinic treat the bites on B's hands... in total, 14 bite marks... the cat, the last time we saw it, was crazily active... after being ran over by a car... so, a cat really has 9 lives!!!

-reagan.chk-

The Cherating Chase

2007-10-29T13:42:00.000+11:00

Date: October 20th 2007
Time: 4.00am

I woke from my sleep... or i should say my nap to prepare myself for this very long awaited day... today I will be joining Deloitte on their Treasure Hunt game from KL to Cherating at Kuantan... Rose from my nap to find out that Charles is not home yet and so i prepared myself and make sure that everything was in place before i start my journey, firstly to fetch B and then after that to fetch Eugene and Karen to complete our team of 4 for this hunt...

Time: 5.45am
Everyone is now in the car and we head off, first for breakfast at Stevens Corner Pandan Perdana before once again heading off to Genting's rest area where every team will group and waits for flag off at 7.00am... we were on time...even had some time left to finish off some unfinished business in the loo... wouldnt want it to attack me when the hunt has started would I...
Everyone gathers... we got our team number... we are Team 8 out of over 30 teams... this number sure looks sleek on my car as well... hohoho... we even had planned a really good strategy... that is to have another team on our side so we can communicate and search together... they are Team 7... Team 7 known as "Here for Beer" and we are "Here for Whisky"...

This man down here is our event organizer... forgot his name but they are from a company which i think is called Time Out...
The mechanics of this hunt is as follow:
We're given a picture with many numbers and a picture of Tom Hanks from Da Vinci Code...
we will have to break and solve the numbering clue to get the name of our first destination...
Along with that we will also have to solve some riddles to purchase the Treasures that we need to have with us... when all is done, we will have to head to the first check-point, give them our answers and then do a task that they have prepared for us... we will then be given another new set of clues and riddles to counter after we have done the task to reach our next destination... this thing goes all the way till we reach our final destination, that is Impiana Resort Cherating...

We started off late... Team 7 and us spend a considerable amount of time to first figure out and break the code as well as figure out what the Treasure was before we start our journey... many of them fled away once the hunt has started... we got to the first check point being the 2nd last team to arrive...
the task... our treasures was to get a weapon, high heels, head accessories (no caps allowed), and sunglasses... we have to equip ourselves with those and do a James Bond pose... so yeah... we got a toy arrow, used 2 maggie cup noodle to stand on as heels, pluck leaves from the rest area and placed it on our heads as the accessories and our own sunglasses... have our pics snapped( which i do not have) and thats it... gets our second set of clues
The second phase was a nightmare... we spent hell a lot of time looking for all the clues as this time we were asked to first solve a clue and find that clue along the way... we have to write down the name of the place we saw the answer... that was a hazard and once we were done, we went onto the junk road heading for our next pit stop... we were ahead of Team 7, they got onto the highway and we went on the junk road which was wrong... so we had to turn back and was then the last team to arrive at checkpoint... task, a blind folded game and eat WASABI...
Final task, we had to rush to Cherating for the search... there were two places to search so we communicated with Team 7 and organized a new strategy where they search in the first place and we searched the second...then we exchange answers... worked out pretty well, we reached the final checkpoint, Impiana Resort as one of the few earliest team and just 2 minutes away from penalty time...thats the end of the HUNT...

People did not waste any time upon arrival... unpack and straight to the beach for some fun...
This sign doesnt mean much... what are the odds of us coming close to one? hmmm...
The waves at Cherating is seriously big... Team 8 (us) were quite brave actually, it started raining and we were off to the sea when the rest are heading back to the pool... the waves were really big...and was pretty fun as we each couple hung onto each other and literally ride on the big waves... we were like surfing on the waves, just that there were no boards... the wave was really big enough to carry us up and carry us along with it before it comes crashing into the sea again... was hell alot of fun before we finally saw a jellyfish and headed off to shore... the jellyfish... DEAD...
Above is Team 8 (Me, Eugene, Karen, B (Suet Leng) ) and below, Team 7 with us... (Kevin, Andrew, Me, B, Edmund, Eugene, Louise)

The results came out and we were in the top 10... despite being on the wrong road and not managing to finish 1 task, we still ended up ahead of Team 7... they each received one CD and we were each given RM100 cash voucher from Metrojaya... =)

Below, pics of our accomodation... Impiana Resort Cherating

The trip came to an end with just a blink of an eye... never knew 2 nights pass that fast... next trip im planning would be to Langkawi with B...
so off we left Impiana and drove to Kemaman near T'ganu for lunch
we were not alone... many more came to this place for this stuffed crab... not bad oh... even have their own website www.stuffedcrab.com... how cool is that...
anyways, i have to point out that my eyes are pretty sharp... throughout the hunt, despite being the one driving, i manage to spot a few answers... proudest one would be a picture of a camel... a very small picture of a camel... which is grouped together with many many many other small pictures...
on the way to lunch, while driving across a small bridge i also spotted a crocodile swimming... hmm... my habit of not concentrating my eyes on the road whenever i drive actually lets me see things that we dun normally get to see...
after the lunch, we head back to Impiana, using the opposite direction to head home... this time, no more Cherating chase... i need not speed at 170kph and this 3 hours drive proved to be one exciting drive, with magnificent views all the way...

-Reagan.CHK-

Happy Moments I Had

2007-09-13T22:26:00.000+10:00

It has been a while since i last wrote something here... recently life has been really hectic and fun at the same time... work was as usual tiring but then recently I got the chance to meet up more often with my B... that is of coz the thing that charged me up, ready for the challenges waiting for me the next day...

B is now working for the Forensic Investigation Division ... it's really cool just listening to the name of what she is doing... Forensic Investigation... CSI... NCIS... wah... so Aussie... and what's even cooler is that she is working with a group of foreigners whom, part of them are Australians...

Recently i got to meet them... the first time was when we went to Mid Valley for some shopping and the second was yesterday night when we went to Petaling Street together... those present were Renee , Matthew , Johnaathan , Multi , Li San, her husband Peter, B and I...

I got to admit that shopping in Petaling Street with these foreigners is really exciting... coz i have never myself ever really shopped there and its fun looking at how they shop... specially Renee... both B and I left the group with Renee coz she wanted to do some shopping first... and it was hell alot of laughter... every stall that she walks past she says "TAK NAK" to them.... and we all laughed... she even did things or i should say she said things that really might make ppl kill her and that really scares the shit out of me... what she said was:

1) looking at fake Tiffany & Co... she told us in front of the person selling that she will get the REAL ones instead of those

2) touches fake branded bags and when they told her that it was leather, she said no and then lifted her bag, touching it and said "THIS... is real leather"

3) vendor asks her: "hey pretty gal... want some shoes"... she replied "Im wearing shoes"

4) she looks at clothes, ppl try to promote, she asks them to leave her alone and not disturb when she is looking

5) MOST SCARY OF ALL... she was looking at dvd when the DVD SELLER tried to introduce new movies to her, she talks back loudly at him saying "i know i know i am just looking OK"

but still, its loads of fun... at least i feel that i am around Australians again...

SECOND STORY
my brother.... Gregory Chen... has turned gay... or i should say he has turned into a BITCH...
this ladies and gentleman... the one with sunglasses... is... my youngest brother...

GREGORY CHEN HOONG CHUIN
he sure made my parents proud...

... No Title ...

2007-08-27T16:08:00.000+10:00

KL is getting crowded... not only by humans but by cars as well...
I remember driving along the Palace road at any time of the day with ease and i can actually speed around that area but thats not the case now...
I also remember the MRR2 road behind my house heading towards Genting Highlands to be one really smooth and fast highway but again thats not the case now...
Loke Yew Road has alwaiz been busy with cars moving slowly all the time but again once more, thats not the case now...
Even the MRR2 road heading towards Bkt Jalil used to be a smooth and fast highway but now, i can barely reach 80km/h there...

Before i went off to Australia, it took me on average 30minutes to reach 1-Utama from my place after working hours... the other day it took me 1hour45minutes...
Before i went to Australia, it took me 15minutes to reach Sunway Pyramid... it took me 30minutes the other day...
Most of the time, it takes me 1hour to reach Genting Highlands... the time was 8.00pm... on a Friday night... it took me almost 2hours to get up there...

This sucks... every journey now got to be started earlier...
Parking at Mid Valley used to suck real bad... now it sucks 100 times more...

Anyways... on my 2 hours journey to Genting Highlands the other day with Yuki (my B), we were stuck in many many jams... first, in MRR2 i noticed the road was badly jammed up so i went onto another road heading towards the old military airport... again, there the jam was with us... then after i turned into another road heading back to Cheras and the road at "Hong Lok" was jam again... then after getting off there, the roundabout at Macro jam again... off to MRR2 again, the road heading up to Steven's Corner... jam again... after that stretch... the road was supposed to be smooth but then there are many cars and so the journey is slow again...

After passing the Karak Toll Plaza, i sped... then from a 3 lane highway, it was reduced to one... again, JAM... after around 10 minutes in the jam, i noticed that it was actually some road block... at that time i thought that i was fucked coz i sped but then realized tat it was JPJ and not the police... it was a massive operation by them... all the cars were direction into the rest area where the whole place was filled by hundreds of JPJ officers doing inspections... it was the biggest operation of that sort that i have ever encountered... among those stopped were big lorry drivers and those Ah Beng who heavily modify their Proton Wira just so that it sounds cool and sounds fast with their ear deafening exhaust pipe which screams like a bitch but moves like a snail... surprisingly enough, there are even Ah Lians who mod their Wira

There was this guy in a grey Wira, fully mod with those funky stickers on the car, 18" alloy rims, full body kit and the screaming thing under the boot... he tailed me and also cut my que for a number of times, deafening me everytime he passes by... cool as he may seem to be, he is slower than my quiet car... haihz...

7 Wonders of ZhongShan China

2007-07-18T12:27:00.000+10:00

July 12, 2007... brought my luggage to the office, continued work and then at 12.30pm, the taxi came and off we went... then only i know i did not bring my China phone... wat a start... so turn back to get and off again we went...
Flight AK0052 to Macau...
This trip, I am going with 2 of my colleagues... Catherine (my department manager) and Stewart (Creative Department Head)...
Touch down at Macau... then the immigration frenzy begins... with heavy luggages and heavy backpacks... this immigration frenzy was a killer... anyways... below is Sands Casino... one of the nicest casino in Macau...
Okie... here the immigraion frenzy begins... touch down... Macau Immigration...
2nd stop... Macau Immigration again to exit Macau...which is this building below... 3r stop... Another immigration for dunno wat reason which is inside the exact same building above... 5 minutes walk later...

4th stop... China Zhu Hai Immigration to enter Zhu Hai China... which is this building below... so, in total, i went through 5 immigration from Malaysia to Zhu Hai China... crazy shit frenzy...
HmmMMm... now its summer in China... and its freaking hot... the temperature is averaging around 36'c to 38'c and the worst thing is that there is no wind so, its very hot and stuffy... plus... the dust and everything is a killer...

Food was kinda cute though... one of it is this chicken below... they rub it in salt, roast it till everything is crispy and then serve it in this manner, standing high... we, became barbarians again... providing us with gloves to rip this creature apart...
Well, my work place there is actually in Siu Lam, Zhong Shan China... its 1 1/2 hours ride from Zhu Hai China by car... then in Zhong Shan itself, i discovered that there are many wonderful things... real wonderful...

7 Wonders of ZhongShan China

1) people there, i mean, females there... are not pretty... and, they do not shave... their armpit hair is so long, if shaved off all together, it can be made into a bowl of mee hoon... seriously i have no idea why they do not shave but then, its disgusting... and they like to wear sleeveless... plus the hot weather... plus the sweat... plus... its just disgusting...

2) Only in China will there be lorry drivers who do not care if their cargo falls out... in the middle of the night, they can drive around, with truck loads of stuff and their door wide open swinging around... 3) Meiga Hotel is where we stayed... its a 5 star hotel and this is what they offer us... WesTORN Breakfast...
4) China is cheap for everything but then it seems that they do not wanna waste alot on transportation... filling this small lorry with this amount of shredded paper... and as you can see from it, the road it traveled is of coz filled with pieces of paper flying around... 5) A perfectly tall building... one of the tallest i guess in this area... is turned into those Ah Beng bags... ppl here like to buy big bags and then put many tags and clips on it to make it look somehow fashionable but in China, advertisers do it but placing ads on the tallest building possible...
6) This photo below actually shocked me when i first saw it... 3 adults on a motorcycle... then came an even more amazing thing... i saw 4 on 1 bike... that was the most amazing thing i thought i saw... then came the power of most power bike stunt... 5 adults on a motorcycle... where else can we find such things other than China... like i said, they are cheap in everything but saves on transportation... 7) China is big... the people there, if thin, they are thin and if fat, they are FAT... restaurants if small, they are pathetic and if big, they are seriously super duper big... factories are similar... small size ones can be a single shop lot and the giants, i saw one with factories stretching for more than 500m and they have 2 to 3 buildings... then they also have a super long entrance to the factory with their personal pond and bridge and road... crazy shit... anyways... this, GIANT PUMPKIN...

China has overall been quite an experience for me... other than the hot weather and long working hours, I actually learned quite alot... not only the working culture that they have but also the way they live...
They work everyday in China... in a month, they are only allowed to take 2 Sundays off... other than that, its work work work...
On the roads, its serious hectic and chaotic... on average we can hear car honk 2 to 3 times every minute and on T junctions, car coming from 4 directions, will race to the centre and then see who is brave and cow enough to get pass other cars to continue their journey... really it was quite an experience...

July 17 2007... it finally time to head home... flight AK0055 and yes... again i had to go through the Immigration Frenzy and yeap... month of June 2007, Air Asia is proud to say that they are 91% on TIME... but us... month of July, our flight is delayed... Anyways, after a tiring week in China, the skies gave us some magnificent view on our way home...

-reagan.chk-

I'm Not a Plastic Bag

2007-07-06T16:13:00.000+10:00

The time is exactly 4am on July 6, 2007. My eyes could not open and I am really in no mood to do anything but then there is something important that i must do today... so, i woke and got both my brothers up to prepare...

Left home around 5.15am for breakfast where Vicky came and joined us before heading off to our destination together... Suria KLCC...

It's the launch of Anya Hindmarch's Limited Edition bag with the words "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" on it... from what i heard from my dad, many Hong Kong stars are using this bag and from what Charles told me, the bidding price for this bag on e-Bay was at USD$600 and 400+ UK pounds... tat's hell alot of cash for a bag that simple and now we are only buying it for RM55... it costs $65 singapore dollar and so, we are by far the cheapest... sadly, we are only entitled to one a piece...
We reach KLCC at 6.30am and there were already many people there... i think we were like number 120 or 130 there... people started queing at 6am... the que started to grow at time passes... the expected number of bags to be sold today is 500 pieces and there were only 100 sold in Singapore... consider us lucky...

11.30am... after 5 hours of que and waiting, we finally started moving... numerous models and celebrities went in first to get their bags and then did some walking around the mall to promote the bag while posing for photos... to be honest, everyone around me do not give a fuck about them being a supermodel or anything that they are because all we wanted was to get the bag, EAT LUNCH and get the hell out of there coz the parking will kill us if we stay...

Disaster then struck... when we were near the shop, the security guard started counting heads... we knew that something was wrong and suddenly, 20 or 30 people after us, were named the last person lucky enough to get the bag... everyone else behind could not buy because there were no stocks and the rumours about having 500 pieces to be sold were apparently fake...

we then, were fortunate enough to be amongst those who can buy the bag... at this point of time, the crowd behind started going berserk... everyone were cursing and shouting in anger... not only because they could not get the bag but because it was a definite thing that the sales person knows how many bags they have to be sold and should let those behind know that there arent so many bags so that they can leave and not wait like a fool for bloody 5 hours and then know that they cant buy... that is really very unfair to the customers...

so, our time to buy came... only 5 people were allowed in the shop at a time and right before we went in, the crowd went crazy behind... the cursing and shouting became so loud and the situation so chaotic that a man managed to run past the barricade and stand in our line... we told the guard that he is not supposed to be there because the gal behind me was so dumb that she did not do anything about the man cutting her line... so we helped her... dumb gal...

so yeah... the crowd really went crazy... they were provoked further by rude security guards that KLCC hired... the guards literally threw the free notepads to the customers who cant buy the bag as if they were hungry dogs looking for food... fucked up guards...

I know this bag is a very simple bag and it does not look stylish in any way but then, still its limited edition and people are going crazy for it... specially the price bid in e-Bay...

nvm that... i got the bag... and its for u B... =) MuakZzZz!!! i guess there are only 200 pieces in Malaysia... n ur one of them who owns it... the original one of coz... hehehe...

- Reagan.CHK-

New Piggy Bank

2007-07-02T18:34:00.000+10:00

Piggy bank is really important to everyone... saves up and stores our cash just so that we have them when we need them...

This, is my old piggy bank... not a traditional pink pig with flowers on it but mine is made of cloth and leather... my lil piggy bank was a Versace money clip wallet... hmmm... throughout its journey and adventures being with me, it has received many complains from many many people... main complain is of coz the money clip type that it is... critics was that the cash that it holds for me are too revealing when i open my wallet... causing major concerns that i might be robbed... and this, is MALAYSIA... crime rates of coz are high... even old folks are not spared...

so, the decision has been made and my old lil Versace piggy bank will be emptied and stored in my safe in my room as an emergency or back-up piggy bank...

This, is my new piggy bank... not the type that my previous piggy bank was... its the more standard type with money compartments... Gucci is its name...

This lil piggy bank costs a whooping RM1090... by far the most expensive piggy bank that i have ever used...

-Reagan.CHK- new piggy bank!!!!

A Whole New Year

2007-06-27T00:25:00.000+10:00

It's a very happy day in the office... not that i am happy working... re-phrase... i am happy working but the happy that i am happy-ing about is not the happy that is work related but the happy of being happy because today is a very happy and special day that makes it all more important to be happy because on a happy day like this i should be a happy boy and in deed on this very happy day i am a very happy boy... happy with what this day is all about, happy that i do not look like crap today, happy with this happy with that and of coz happy with what i have prepared... hmmm... that sums up why i am happy today on this very happy day...

Preparation for today stated 3 weeks ago where i went around gathering stuffs and spending time preparing and making things the way that i want them to be today and i am again happy to say that things are actually the way that i want them to be and i am very happy... ahahahaha....

3 years ago on this date and month, that is 26/06/2004, i sat in my car with this very special girl in my heart and i drove around the whole KL, yes... the whole KL... just to find the courage to tell her what i wanna tell her... so, at the end of the day, i held out my hands and she held them, marking the beginning of our love and sweet relationship... of coz it is not always true that the relationship is sweet... sometimes its sour and at times even bitter but thats how all relationships are right? oh well, its a happy day...

this day, 26/06/2007, marks our 3rd year being together... below are the things i prepared for this day... nothing too expensive or special but then it all comes from the heart... guess thats the most important thing...
- special highlight of what i prepared... the card on the top is hand made... opens up with a pop-up love... then a compilation of some songs on the CD in the right and finally a hand made white box with pictures that i decorated thru photoshop...

Meeting up after working hours, we went for Korean BBQ at Sri Hartamas... small little place with very helpful and hardworking ppl... bad thing abt it was that we could not and was not allowed to BBQ our own food... that sucks...

PORK

LAMB

SPICY CHICKEN

Oh well, the dinner lasted pretty long and yeap, after that we headed home...
hehehe... 3 yrs is a long long time... seriously happy and seriously glad...
throughout this 3 yrs i have been pretty bad at many many occasions but then given the chance to change...
so, change is what i will do and to love my B aka Suet Leng more is what i definitely will do...

Happy 3rd Year Anniversary B...

Hostel

2007-06-26T12:50:00.000+10:00

I have always enjoyed watching movies... any type of movies... be it romance, thriller, action, violence, anime, fantasy or horror... all these movies do not make me feel sick or give me bone chillers when i watched them... one in particular that i enjoy watching is actually horror movies... anything related to the supernatural... ghosts to be specific...
Japanese, Korean and Thailand horror movies are by far the best because they actually give ur heart some extra pumping especially when the movies often gives u the sudden shock with the appearance of the ghost all of a sudden, together with good sound effects... another type is the one that makes ur heart pump faster by the minute... those where they show you scenes like a fella on the floor trying to crawl away in fear when they see the "thing" crawling down from the stairs or when a fella is in the lift, trying to close the door which often enough closes REALLY slowly and then u see those "thing" either walking, running or crawling (surprisingly with tremendous speed) towards the lift... those are the type of movies i enjoy most... heart pumping movies...

Yesterday was a different story... i watched an old movie... together with my brother... which, is the first time i watched a movie of this sort... its an old movie which i regard as a FUCKING gruesome one... its Hostel...the scenes are so disturbing that once i watched, it automatically plays in my mind of how i would feel if I was the one in the situation... that immediately made my whole body weak and there are chills in my bones...

This movie is basically about a place where we can do whatever we want and get watever we want with money... be it gals, sex or even murder...a group of people in the organization pays other people to cheat lustful man so that they can capture them, keep them and torture them to death... Americans are of coz the most expensive bunch to kill as the torturer has to pay 25,000 euros to capture and torture one American guy...

Some scenes that I would like to share to show wat i mean:

1. A guy is handcuffed to the chair and his legs cuffed to each sides of a chair that is locked onto the floor... meaning that he cant move and of coz, cant escape... then, comes this man to torture him... first he drills 2 holes on the guy... one on each side of his shoulders... the guy screams and begs for his release, thus, the torturer slids open the ankle of the guy and then opens the door and lets him run... once he stands up and makes his move, his feet gave way and he collapses... finally, killed...

2. Another guy, chained in a similar manner has 2 of his fingers sawed off with a chainsaw... seriously this is a fucking disturbing scene but then he is fortunate enough to escape when the torturer slips on his 2 severed fingers and had the chainsaw cut open his abdomen... this guy by the way, is the main actor so he survives...

3. Finally, this Japanese chic was tortured in the worst manner... i think mainly because she is an Asian... they are the cheapest to capture in the list... same way, she is tied to the chair and the fella slowly burns her face with a "penunu bunsen"... half her face was burned like "ba gua" or "yok gon" before the main actor came to her rescue and shot the fella to death... at this time, her face was badly burnt and one of her eyeballs was hanging loose on her face... he sickly and bravely held up the eyeball and cut it off... thats sick enough but whats worst was that once he cut if off, yellow like paste started squirting out from her eye... OMFG... enough said...

This type of movie seriously makes me weak all over but then it somehow teaches us not to go fuck around with pretty gals coz they might be from that organization... so, upcoming films that came from the same production company and director that i might wanna watch, of coz its the same TYPE of movie is Saw 1,2,3 and Hostel 2....

-ReaganCHK-

Law of Attraction

2007-06-11T12:12:00.000+10:00

Whilst in Australia, i watched a documentary called "The Secret"... and Charles (my elder bro) was also reading a book which tells the exact same thing televised in the documentary...
The main point in this book highlights the "Law of Attraction"... it goes something like this... when you wish so hard for something, belief that it will happen and sooner or later, it will happen... by believing in what you wish will happen, it pulls in the positive energy and realize those dreams that we have...
I tried this several times while looking for a parking space in most shopping centers but then, I was always left disappointed that my law of attraction does not work... only once that I came close to realizing my law of attraction was when I waited and identified a particular car that will move out for me... really a couple came walking towards that car after a few minutes but their car was 2 lots behind me and so, it somehow failed as there was already another car waiting...
Thought that my law of attraction really failed but then recently, it worked... in a bad way tho... was driving back from Hartamas one Saturday night and a few Mat Rempits zoomed past my car... one was even doing tat superman stunt when zooming past me... the immediate thing tat came into my mind was... "speed speed speed... hope u bang n die"... about 100m later, cars began to slow down and I saw a bike engulfed in flames... it was that superman fella's bike as i remembered how it looked like... and then there was his partner's bike stuck under a divider and they were desperately trying to get it out... well, guess my law of attraction finally worked... against them... fortunately tho, none of them was hurt... only the bike engulfed in flames... oh well...

On another happier note... mom's bday is coming up... and this was the first time i've actually spent so much money on a present for mom... both Charles and I shared the cost tho... we bought a new mobile phone for mom... its Samsung U-600... a really classy phone... altho her first words when she saw it was... "YOR... why u waste money buy all this... how much is it? i pay u back la... u all earn so little..." and it was said in a rather angry tone... , i know that she is really happy to receive that phone... ngek ngek ngek... a really super pretender de... hmmmm

what other happy things in life... hmmm... relationship is getting better than before... things are going fine... and... this month, it will be 3 yrs... how time flies... from the first year in Uni till we graduate... together we have walked through the hardest storm in our studying life and now, both proudly graduated and relationship better by the day... what more can i ask for... hmmm...

-reagan.chk-

Changes In Me

2007-06-04T23:04:00.000+10:00

Logically speaking, when earth orbits around the sun, things change in par with it
Day by day, things change, people change, lives change
Similarly,
Who I am today is no longer who I was before
Who I was before was also a time when I wasnt who I actually am before that
Things in my life has changed alot, changed dramatically

Before pre-u, I was someone who does not talk alot... I was someone who does not social around and does not mix around with people...
Then came the time when I left high school and enter Pre-U... there, I changed... into a person who goes out alot, mix around easily and talks alot... at that point of time, I felt that I was the happiest because of who I mix with and who I was with... then again, there is a bad part to it because I became someone who is violent and unreasonable, someone who is very impatient and has a very bad attitude...
When it came to Uni, I changed again... meeting Suet Leng was also a major part of the process in me changing... my patience grew, my temper cooled and my violent conduct reduced... still, I am still a happier person after all these changes...
On my final months in Australia, my grandma passed away... at that very time, I fell down... my life stopped... I grew up in the caring arms of my grandma and my parents...and my grandma plays a big role in my life... her departure made me change again... back to who I was before that... my temper grew and everything changed again...even to the point that I always fight with Suet Leng and also reached a point where we nearly broke up... fortunately enough this woke me up again...
Then again the changing process took place again and I am who I am today... again, patient, calm and again, nothing to say...

So, there goes the changes in me... up and down and I am back to square one... someone who I regard as quiet, calm and patient... there are good points to this but then being quiet is the only down point to it i guess... i do not talk much, i do not mix with people and I have no intentions and interest in meeting new people... thats just who I am now... happy with what I have and happy to keep things the way they are.... received critics from many people asking me to open up more but I guess time is all I need... talking to me, is something that must be learnt... and to date, I am still lazy to learn this...

A New Step in Life

2007-05-07T12:48:00.000+10:00

Yup... the dumb face... the funny hat... the robe... the flowers and the bear... its GRADUATION TIME BABY... wohooo... 16yrs of studies... all for this outfit to be worn n photos taken... not bad huh...

The road to this day was not easy... there were happy moments, sad moments, success stories, many failure stories, bad boy times n angel times... plus all tat up, it makes life in school, pre-u and uni alot more fun and memorable...

Tracking back time... i spent 12yrs of my education life in the same school... Sekolah Sri Cempaka... it is there where i met friends that i know till now... friends i knew since the day even before we know what is sex... what is truancy... wat is flirt... wat is arguements... wat is love... wat is this n wat is that...
The time spent there was great... meeting people, making friends... having good times, tonnes of bad times... again, all ads up to the word FUN and EXPERIENCE...this place shaped me pretty much to who i am... builds a foundation of my personality, my attitude, my life...

Pre-U... its in Sunway University College... taking up the Canadian International Matriculation Program (CIMP)... friends i met here i can say are quite influential in making me someone i am now... i would not say tat they are good influences but then again, it somehow shapes me up more and also through this experience of being with them, i learn alot abt life... alot abt the importance of studies... also it was here tat i experienced a whole new life in the education world... first off, of coz there is no more SCHOOL UNIFORM... secondly, its the responsibility of being there on time, being in class on time and also finishing all assigned assignments and with a new rule, no PLAGARISM... hmmm... a new word i learned to REMEMBER...
i would not say that the time spent in CIMP was 100% bad... the friends i mixed with were 100% bad influence... there are those that i mix with who really helped me alot throughout my journey here... thus, i managed to move on to another new level in life... UNIVERSITY...

Monash University Malaysia is my next destination... here, i met a group of friends whom i thought were great friends... hanging out all the time in a group, laughing joking and teasing each other while at the same time helped each other out in work...
When relationships in the group came into play, ppl show their true colors... talking bad, stabbing back, pretending to be friends and lots lots more u name it...
Suet Leng and I were targets of attack... for no particular reason... we treated them good and they returned it wit betrayal... so fuck it...
seriously this road was not easy at all... i am fortunate enough to have Suet Leng helping me n guiding me through this times... 2 yrs in Malaysia, 2 yrs of problems with friends, 2 yrs of betrayal... thats enough...

then came this new turn in life... Suet Leng and I flew to Australia... Melbourne... to finish off our studies... destination? Monash Australia...
This is a whole new experience for us both... new life, no parents, living so far away from them, controlling own expense with limited budget, cooking n cleaning n washing everything ourselves, doing grocery ourselves, new environment, new people around us and, we lost the ability of easy transportation...aka... NO CAR...
what we gained from this experience... work harder to not disappoint parents coz its 3x more expensive... be independent... appreciate what we have around us... one year here was enough... so much new stuff learnt... and within a short period of only a year, the memories that we gathered will never be forgotten... did so much together... looked after each other, guided each other and helped each other overcome the hardest of times...
friends made here are also to be thanked... they made life easier, made life fun and also helped us when times are hard...

So, the journey has finally come to an end... this road has reached its junction... its the end of it... whether to turn left or right on this junction, its up to us to decide... through this long journey, i have seen n experience so much... so much that it will now be left to me to decide how i wanna continue my journey... to turn where... which is the right path... which is the best path...

Before that, lets just let me put my memories here... memories of finally reaching this junction in life... Bear... bought by Charles... flowers... bought by Suet Leng's parents... thanks y'all
pathetic face... my own doing...

Suet Leng and I...

Charles and I... well, he did give hints n advices on my journey here..so... thx alot...

Myself, Charles n Suet Leng...
in hand, the paper we worked hard for...the certificate... the toll ticket at the end of the road...

Myself, Fiona n Suet Leng... thanks Na for everything that you have done for us... all the time spent together... the gossips n problem solving we had in MaxB... everything n anything... thanks so much Na...

Well, this road has ended... sitting at the graduation room was emotional for me personally... i felt that i have finally succeeded in doing something right...the moment my name was called... altho in a particularly funny way... which is "Hoong Khuin Reagan Chen", i still felt extremely happy...
Succeeded in reaching this place where i will start a whole new life...
I have not let anyone down...
I have not let myself down...
I worked hard for this... not totally my own credits but credits also goes to everyone i met along the way... everyone has helped me in certain ways... and again, reaching this point in my life, it would never be a reality without y'all... specially my parents... again, i thank everyone...

-ReaganCHK... a whole new person-