Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Innocuous

It's a simple question. One you ask many times to a whole variety of people. Acquaintances, friends, family, etc.

"How was your weekend?"

It's along the lines of, "How are you?" except in a sense it's more sincere and can be elaborated on. It's not as broad and meaningless. I say I'm fine even when I'm not.

Anyway, this time it backfired on me spectacularly.

The answer to the question?

"I've been stressed. Hardly slept."

And after a pause, "I'm getting divorced."

Oops.

I felt quite bad for her because she's a lovely person and good friend and I wasn't sure what or how much to say. Somehow I managed to bumble my way through it. I suppose it was inevitable. In a way, I had seen it coming and wasn't taken by surprise but I had hoped it would somehow work out and they could find a reason, maybe something consistent from day one which made them a couple in the first place, to remain married.

It had shocked me when it turned out I have met her husband before but such was the situation that I had at that point thought they were friends. It was a group outing which she invited me to and I was meeting nearly everyone for the first time. I had no inkling at the time that he was her husband.

I am pleased though that she has many good friends and so has a good network of support should she ever need it.

It's one thing to have realised something. It's another whole different matter when things come to a head and something actually happens.

I've been told that the divorce rate amongst Malaysians in my age group is spectacularly high. But when it's someone you know and like, it's not really a statistic anymore. They're real people. And they're hurting right now.

So.

How was your weekend?

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Barbsie Loaded



Happy happy happy happy happy happy happy happy Birthday!

Monday, August 27, 2007

Honey, My Eggs Are Ready

On Saturday I went to the last day of the Culinary trade show at KLCC. I had a invitation and a pass courtesy of a supplier I'd met in my last job. Everyone else was walking around with passes that said 'Visitor' while mine had 'VIP' on it although what additional benefits a VIP was supposed to have I have no idea. It was good, I got to walk around and meet many people I'd met in the course of "The Last Job". Got to look at the latest and greatest, renew acquaintances, say hello and meet new people.

I met an old friend from Perth days. We were housemates and good friends my last semester. I haven't seen him for over seven years. Malaysian but lives in Kota Kinabalu. It was good chatting and catching up with him. From him I've learnt my latest revelation.

I'll share it with you.

When you're trying for a kid, it's not fun, it feels like work.

You wake up, get dressed and get ready to go to work when the wife pipes up, "Honey, I'm ovulating."

One foot is out the door, briefcase in hand. You think to yourself, "oh, fuck" then close the door, get undressed and proceed to do exactly that.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Memes to do with crocked fingers

Ah, I love memes. These ones came from Nick from Anything Goes!

4 jobs I’ve had

  • Pizza Delivery Driver
  • Shop Owner/Manager
  • IT Executive
  • Property Manager

4 films I could watch over and over
  • Groundhog Day
  • Project A II
  • The Fifth Element
  • Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind

4 Places I have lived

  • Ipoh
  • Perth, Western Australia
  • Damansara Utama
  • Bandar Utama

4 Favorite TV shows

  • Mythbusters
  • The Simpsons
  • Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy
  • Spongebob Squarepants (but it's funny!)

4 Favorite Foods
  • Chicken Rice
  • Lamb Chops with fried onions and potatoes
  • Fried Crispy Chicken
  • Pork!

4 Websites I visit everyday (Only four? I visit more than four ...)

  • soccernet.com
  • football365.com
  • wikipedia
  • The blogs listed on my own

4 Places I would love to be
  • Perth
  • Kota Kinabalu
  • Corfu
  • Pangkor Laut

4 Favorite Colors
  • Silver
  • Black
  • Red
  • Yellow

4 Names I love but would/could not use for my children
  • Elisa
  • Jennan
Can only think of two.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And now for the second meme. This one is about 8 questions you shouldn't ask me.

1) Have you put on weight?

2) Why don't you get a real job?

3) Why aren't you married yet?

4) When are you going to get married?

5) Aren't you a Korean serials actor?

6) At any time in your life have you ever gone by the name Luc Francois Thierry Bob Jones?

7) Is that a torchlight in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

8) So.... how many men, women and transgenders have you slept with?

Sorry. Some of the eight are just made up (really!). There just aren't that many questions I react badly to.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Fingered

I'm not neglecting my blog.

I've been reduced to one good hand again and I'll tell you typing with one hand is too much of a bother. Another footy injury, whee! I took a shot to the fingers and it looks like I have sausages attached to my right hand instead of fingers.

On the bright side, I could be popular with the ladies.

On the downside, I won't be doing a lot of blogging till the swelling goes down and it doesn't hurt so damn much.

Monday, August 20, 2007

Enforced

Ah! I'm back.

Latest hiatus twofold and was forced upon me when my modem died a quiet death without even as much as a whimper. I swear that manufacturers engineer their products to expire shortly after their warranty period ends. The second part of the enforced hiatus was when the cable on my laptop's power adapter broke. Looking at it, it's designed to break if the cable is repeatedly wound up. A new one costs RM250. I tell you, these people are utter and complete bastards.

My next modem is going to be a Belkin wireless modem/router. Belkins come with lifetime warranties. That's got to be worth the price.

So yeh, here I am again. I'll get something down soon as I can think of something to put down.

Job Personality

I did one of those online thingies. It's a quick thing and this is the page generated as the result:

You would be very happy in a career that utilised your level-headedness, and allowed you to work mainly on your own. You want a career that allows you to stimulate your senses and your mind, without having to be involved with lots of people. Some careers that would be perfect for you are:

  • Novelist
  • Photographer
  • Vet
  • Medical Technician
  • Paralegal
  • Geologist
  • Marine Biologist
  • Graphic Designer
  • Online Content Developer
  • Webmaster
  • Computer Security
  • Producer
  • Computer Programmer
  • Technical Writer
  • Systems Analyst
  • Meteorologist
  • Artist
You like working and being alone. You like to avoid attention at all costs. You tend to keep to yourself, and not interact much with the people around you. You enjoy spending time with a few a close friends. You like to listen to others, but don't like sharing much about yourself. You are very quiet and private.

You are very practical, and only act after thinking things through. You don't like being forced to answer quickly. You have to evaluate the situation completely. You make decisions based on what you can verify with your senses.

You like to be involved deeply in one or two special projects. You like to be behind the scenes. You are very logical and fair. You feel you should be honest with others at all costs.

You trust what is certain. You only like new ideas if they can be practically applied to the situation. You value what is real. You use your common sense. You like to utilise the skills you have instead of learning new ones. You are very specific and detailed when writing or talking to others. You follow directions well. You like things to be laid out for you to do instead of working them out for yourself. You like decisions to be made. You don't like things to be left in limbo. You like to know what you are getting into before you commit to something.

You like to focus on the here and now. You enjoy completing projects. It is important for you to achieve and succeed. Therefore, you believe in working hard and playing later. You like to set goals and work towards them.

Are these things for real? I feel it's all pretty accurate till the last paragraph. I'm the exact opposite! I wrestle and stumble my way towards objectives (though I achieve them in the end) and I'd rather play now and work later!

Test is here.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Threshold

What is pain and why? It's a simple question but one I think has to do with self preservation and survival. I'm no scientist. Have never claimed to be. I don't do much research. All I do is type out what I think. This is a blog. Not a white paper!

Pain, to me, is a self preservation tool. Picked up a hot potato? You'd drop it plenty quick. Because if you didn't, it'd cause damage to your fingers. Walked into the side of a table? It'd hurt. You wouldn't do it again. And your shins would thank you for it. I barked my own shin in the dark while I was in Singapore staying in my sister's guest room. I'd switched off the lights and didn't really know the geography of the place. I spent a few minutes in the dark rolling around on my back while clutching the aggrieved bit of leg, whimpering softly so as to not awaken my sister and bro in-law.

Sometimes pain comes immediately. Sometimes it takes a while. Why?

Just on Sunday I was playing futsal as usual and I had three separate incidents. First, I did my ankle after being pushed while jumping for a high ball. Then I aggravated an existing injury when I landed on my knee while I had a stint in goal. Then I got kicked (really kicked) in the thigh from someone else's follow through.

I still played right up to the end of the game. When I got home later, things were a bit different. After I'd taken off my shoes and all the football armour, my ankle started to swell and my thigh became increasingly sore. This was almost two hours after I'd stopped playing. The next morning I couldn't walk. It's Tuesday and I'm still lurching about like Igor from any horror film involving reanimated corpses.

My thinking is this. If I'd lived 10,000 years ago, one time or another I'd be running from something big and hairy with lots of teeth. If I fell and sprained my ankle theoretically I'd be chopped meat. However, I'd been able to get up and keep running at the same pace even on the bad ankle (left) and the bad thigh (right). I think adrenalin has a whole heap to do with it. After I got to safety and the adrenalin wore off, that's when I'd feel how much damage was really done.

That's what happened to me. With the adrenalin flowing I could keep going. Once I slowed down, everything started to swell up and hurt. The 10,000 year reasoning that I've already gotten to safety. If I didn't, it wouldn't matter would it? One thing for sure, if I'd been chased again the next day, chopped meat. So I'd lie low and hide away till I got better. Damn good thing humans are social animals.

So, I have to rest until my legs are better. If I tried to play again too soon, I might damage something really quick. Still, it's better than being chopped meat.

Monday, August 13, 2007

The Living After Death

I have a few childhood friends whom I'm still in touch with. One of my buddies TK, I've known since I was seven years old. We were on the same school bus till he moved house and I kinda lost contact with him. We were in the same school but he was a year older.

A year later, a family friend wanted to introduce my sister and I to her lawyer's son. It turned out to be TK. How the wheels of fortune and fate turn. A few years later he moved back to my area but our friendship was already pretty secure by then.

His mother and him were considered family friends and his mom would take us fishing, we'd go out for meals and she once took a bunch of us noisy kids for a holiday. It was brilliant.

We stayed in touch even after we went overseas. On the day he found that he'd been accepted to Bonn University in Australia, I was with him in PJ. He bought the beers that night and it started a tradition of taking turns to buy the beers whenever we met up when he came back and it continued when I went over to Australia myself. This then changed from the Australian summer holidays to Chinese New Year after I'd started work in KL.

Over the years we've seen a lot, done a lot and the friendship has stood the test of time. Until something happened. Something I've written about on this blog before.

His mother took her own life last year after a few years of depression. It shocked me to the core and greatly saddened my whole family. Since that day I haven't called, spoken to or seen TK. It was nothing but plain cowardice. I didn't know what to say to him and I didn't think any words would be adequate. People told me that as a friend, he'd know what I was trying to say but I just couldn't do it.

We had a brief chat on MSN half an hour ago. He initiated it. First contact in a year and a half. He'd like to meet up when he comes to KL at the end of the month. Of course I accepted immediately, somewhat gratefully I might add. He might not be looking for it but I have to tell him how sorry I am and how I have remembered his mother.

I know I still carry the sadness with me cos I'm feeling it now.

Aquarium

I hate moving. I love my new house but I have always hated moving. All the packing, disposing, transporting, lifting and all that.

The most difficult things for me to move though are my aquariums. They're big, fragile and heavy. Had to catch all the fish, empty out the tanks which includes water, sand, stones, wood and plants. Have to disassemble the stands, lights, aerators, pumps and filters. Move everything and back to square one. Set everything up again. Since it's going to be such a pain, I thought I'd document it. Cos you're going to see why it's going to be worth it.


4 foot tanks, 3 days ago.


4 foot tanks, yesterday


2 and half foot tank, 3 days ago


2 and a half foot tank, yesterday



Cannister filters

It would have been good to be able to be planting the tanks by this week but I've had a bit of a setback. What else but footy injuries. I got pushed while I was jumping for a ball so I landed badly on an ankle. And I also got kicked in the thigh so this means I can hardly walk right now. Anyway I'll be posting updates as the aquariums progress. There are still a number of stages to go.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Bootay!

There was an exchange between Bobo and myself on the chatterbox if you'd noticed it.

Bobo : Well you could flash yours for advertising!
huisen : Too dangerous. My butt is too delicious for this blog!
Bobo : Too dangerous?! haha maybe it'll be FLOODED with traffic.........

It all came about when I found and posted a picture of a girl flashing her panty clad rear end at the camera. There was the legend "You Only Live Once" across her cute butt. Since that's the title of my buddy's blog I mentioned that I wish I had advertising like that. Which of course lead to the exchange on the chatterbox.

I wonder if it's known that once, for the hell of it, I did post a picture of my extra fine naked buttocks on the internet. The picture's long gone. Lost in the Great Hard Disk crash of 2005. Who knows though. It may be still floating around cyberspace. It's being used by other people claiming it's their ass. Royalties. Pay up.

One? No, it was two!

Haha!

Living creatures as pawns

A Singapore post from home. Been home a week actually!

My last two days were pretty good. As I'd said, we'd got Greg married off to Cheryl and didn't have to hold either of them down. That was over the weekend. My last two days were spent chillin' with my sister. She took half days off and we went to Underwater World one day and Singapore Zoo the next.

For someone who is as cynical and critical as I am, I can be naive and innocent as well. I don't know where I got the idea that modern day housing of living creatures are beneficial to the species, educational and in the direction of conservation. I think it's in the happy little world of my own.

Underwater World on Sentosa Island was a tourist trap. Should have realised that since Sentosa is a tourist trap. The tanks and ponds are overcrowded, badly designed and in a single word, crap. I don't know why I expected it to be like the aquaria in Perth. Maybe it was more in hope. The sensationalisation that it had the most sand tiger sharks of any aquaria might be true but all I saw was a bunch of small sand tigers crammed together in a space way too small. The underwater walkway here is small, shallow and compartmentalised. And when you see rubbish like plaster simulations of underwater ruins you have to know it's complete bollocks. There might have been a pirates treasure chest as well. Another lasting vision is the one of the coconut robber crab. It was in a space where it could move one and a half feet left and that's if it were on the right side of the tank. Maybe three inches forwards and backwards.

This bloody place should be renamed, "If It Dies - We'll Just Replace It!"

My ideal that all nature parks, zoos and aquaria have the working philosophy of educating the public, maintaining the animals, research and conservation has pretty much blown up in my face. This place is all about tha munny. All exits ensure everyone goes through the souvenir shops.

I have no idea what KLCC's aquaria is like. Maybe I'm just scared to find out.

The next day, sis and I went to Singapore Zoo. This place I like. It isn't perfect but it's on the other end of the scale compared to the bloody Underwater World. It's lovely. So much green all around. Grand old trees and so much natural life around. It seemed that it wasn't only the zoo's animals on display. The trees were full of birds, native and migratory, and every piece of water had fish in it. My sister is an avid bird watcher and I'm a fish kinda guy so it was bonus time. It makes me wonder though about people in general. That the zoo has to put up signs saying "Do NOT touch the Arapaima. They may bite." The Arapaima is the world's largest freshwater fish. Someone trying to touch a fish which is six feet long, torpedo shaped, feeds by the implosion method and has a mouth full of teeth must be trying to impress his girlfriend or his wee gay person. Yes, his. That's the wonderful thing about being female. Males do stupid things even when they know it's stupid 'cos their egos are saying "do it you pansy!".

Not all the animal enclosures are best suited to their occupants. Can't really blame the zoo I guess. The lions did look out of place padding about on rumput lembu. This is so easily forgivable because the zoo has research and breeding programs. It's still not much space but effort is put into utilising the space for the needs of the occupants. Zoos charge tourist prices but at least here I know the money is needed for maintaining the zoo and the other stuff you don't see in the foreground.

We spent hours at the zoo, leaving only nearing closing time when some animals were already being put in their night pens. It was a far cry of seeing everything in an hour and leaving the place muttering, "tourist trap".

I've been to Sentosa. First time since 1983. I need never go again.

Visit the zoo though. It's worth it. See, listen, smell, observe, learn and appreciate.

Busted

The Blog Police came a'knockin'.

"Update or else....", they said.

Friday, August 03, 2007

Oh Four

I'm back home in BU. I got back yesterday. It's pretty cool there's a bus line running from 1 Utama to Singapore and back. Beats having to go into KL to catch the bus down. But when I got off yesterday, I might have travelled over 300km on the bus but damn if I couldn't get home from 1U on my own two feet. I still have some things to share about my trip to Singapore. I shall write about it soon.

I've ended my term with the F&B Consultancy I was working for. So I'm back to the old lifestyle for a while. I woke up today and I don't really know what to do or where to start. Clean house? Gardening? Tidying up? Set up aquariums?

Gah.

My cell phone number starts with a 4. Should have been a 5 since I bought it in my home town of Ipoh but anyway, whatever. It started off as a prepaid but of course is now one of them horrible Maxis plans.

I have a number which suggests I'm in Penang. I'm from Ipoh and I now reside in Selangor. So, whenever I get a call from a number which on the caller ID is from Penang, I pretty much know it's a wrong number.

Me: Hello.
Caller: Uh, hello.
Me: Yes?
Caller: Uh, wrong number?
Me: Probably.
Caller: Sorry.
Me: No worries.

That's pretty much a typical example of the exchange with a call from Penang. And no, not once has any of them even sounded like a babe.

And finally;
I've just discovered Nyomi Zen is Malaysian. Ah.... Finally a reason for a slight touch of patriotism. Malaysia Boleh!

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Nutritious Lunch

I suppose it is reflective of my time here in Singapore that lunch for me today is spongecake topped with Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

I look in the mirror and see one tubby bitch.

LOL!

Babes and not Babes

If anything, I've been getting an eyeful. Shorts and tans seem to be in and as far as I'm concerned, quite appreciated visually.

After the first couple of days seemed like Singapore was suffering some hiccups in the babe department, the babe count has roared back convincingly. Though not always. There is some measure of subtlety I feel so I was surprised when I came across blatant.

We had gotten Greg safely married off in church (didn't even have to hold him down!) and a few of us were on the way back when in the light rain we saw a tall figure in a top with a plunging neckline and tight three quarters. Standing - standing in a sexually agressive pose.

I managed to blabber out, "Look at this!" And we drove past her. Wide eyed and disbelieving. It's the sort of thing you'd expect in a nightclub not in front of HDB flats in the middle of the day. Anyway....

After we'd gone past Ronnie, who was driving, and I looked at each other and blurted out, "That's a man!"

Yeah. Only a woman who was born a man would be that sexually blatant.