Michael Clarke Duncan.

December 10, 1957 – September 3, 2012

Giant of a man, actor Michael Clarke Duncan has passed away due to heart attack at the age of 54. His most memorable role is that of John Cofey, from the movie, 1999's The Green Mile, which is adapted from Stephen King 1996 novel of the same name. He also appeared in 2005's Sin City as Manute and 1998's Armageddon. I always thought one day, if an X-Men sequel or reboot is in the making, and plans to include Apocalypse, he would be my personal first choice to play that role.

Neil Armstrong.

Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012).

 

 "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind."

US massacre at The Dark Knight Rises screening.

AURORA, Colorado: An emotional candle-lit vigil was held late Friday for the victims of a US massacre at a premiere of the latest Batman movie, which left 12 people dead and nearly 60 injured. The town of Aurora, Colorado stood in silent mourning, as it emerged that the alleged gunman bought more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition on the Internet, and four guns, in the two months before the shootings.The masked, black-clad shooter, named as James Holmes, 24, burst into a movie theater barely 20 minutes into the midnight screening of "The Dark Knight Rises," throwing two tear-gas type devices before opening fire. "As far as we know, it was a pretty rapid pace of fire in that theater," said Aurora police chief Dan Oates, his voice shaking at times with emotion, and exhaustion after a long night and day dealing with the trauma. In an end-of-day update, he amended slightly the number of victims of the shooting at a midnight screening of the latest Batman movie, "The Dark Knight Rises," from 71 to 70. Twelve of them died, including 10 in the theater. A local children's hospital reported six young victims, the youngest of whom was aged only six. At least three of the wounded were US military members, the Pentagon said. Shots fired in one auditorium went through the wall and hit people in the auditorium next door. The first police were on the scene within 90 seconds, while eventually some 200 officers swarmed around the building. "Nearly everyone was shot," he said, adding that a "handful" of those treated in hospital did not have gunshot wounds, but suffered other injuries in the mayhem. "In the last 60 days, he purchased four guns at local metro gun shops and through the internet he purchased over 6,000 rounds of ammunition," he said. He added: "My understanding is that all the weapons that he possessed he possessed legally, and all the clips that he possessed, he possessed legally, and all the ammunition he possessed, he possessed legally." Police arrested Holmes - who was wearing full body armor and a gas mask, apparently to protect him from effects of his own tear gas - without encountering resistance by his car at the rear of the theater. Holmes, who reportedly attended the University of Colorado medical school until last month, had no criminal record aside from a citation for speeding in October 2011, according to police. His nearby apartment was found to be booby-trapped with a sophisticated arsenal of incendiary and chemical devices. Police used mobile ladders to try to enter the apartment through external windows. But Oates said late Friday that the operation had been postponed until Saturday. Witnesses described chaos chillingly similar to that depicted in the Batman films, in which maniacal villains terrorize Gotham City. "I saw some people start to get up. I poked my head up to see what was going on and when I did that I saw another flash and instantly put my head down as he started shooting again," said 17-year-old Tanner Coon. Cinemas in New York tightened security at Batman showings, and the AMC theatre chain announced a ban on face masks and fake weapons - several people wore costumes in Aurora, possibly helping Holmes to blend in with the melee. The French premiere of the film in Paris was cancelled. Holmes' parents, who live in San Diego, were shocked but "fully cooperating with law enforcement officials," said a San Diego Police Department spokeswoman, Andra Brown. President Barack Obama cut short a campaign trip to Florida and returned to the White House to address the situation, although his spokesman said there appeared to have been no link to terrorism. "Such violence, such evil, is senseless. But, while we will never know fully what causes somebody to take the live of another, we do know what makes life worth living," the president told a somber crowd in Florida. "The people we lost in Aurora loved and they were loved," Obama said. As with previous such shootings - all too regular in the US - lobby groups and some political leaders called for legislation to restrict civilians' access to firearms. "Maybe it's time that the two people who want to be president of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do because this is obviously a problem across the country," New York mayor Michael Bloomberg said. The US congressman for Aurora, Democrat Ed Perlmutter, called Holmes a "psychotic son of a bitch," adding: "I'm sorry for the cussing. You know, it just is boggling to my mind." Obama ordered US flags to be flown at half-mast for six days. Oates, the Aurora police chief, said the suspect set off two devices to distract the crowd and opened fire with an AR-15 assault rifle, a Remington shotgun and a Glock automatic pistol. At least two of the weapons were purchased from a local gunseller, Bass Pro Shops. "Based on the records we have reviewed, personnel in our Denver store correctly and fully followed all federal requirements with respect to the sale of one shotgun and one handgun," it said in a statement. Aurora is barely 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the scene of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, in which two students shot dead 13 people before committing suicide. About 200 people attended an early evening vigil, while another memorial was due to be held at midnight Friday. - AFP

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I sometimes wonder how or could such incidences be prevented? Gun totting, lone shooter armed and shoot at innocents. Not only in US, but also in this country which luckily, guns possession is outlawed, even though it perplexed me how robbers sometimes can get their hands on guns. The place I currently stayed are now officially declared a "hot spot" after a series of robberies in what is known to be a safe residential area for as long as I can remenber. The residential association has now enforced security guards, boom gates etc. Some volunteers even takes their time off and maybe, personally, risk their lives by making rounds at night and early morning to ensure safety. What makes me feel angry, and abit of helplessness is that those criminals come to you. They scheme and plan and attack while we remain like sitting ducks, vulnerable. Like the series of car park robberies where the victims are injured in the process, as well as the terrible death of an elderly lady in Penang's Rifle Range at the hands of a snatch thief, while the people leaves her lying there as her breath runs out. Public apathy at its ugliest. And of course the recent indicident where a pair of seemingly normal man and woman ran amok and stormed Putrajaya. Can someone gives me an answer?

All abuzz over ‘Ethical Clothing'.

By JOSEPH SIPALAN and JOSEPH KAOS Jr
~ from The Star, 6th Jan 2012.

PETALING JAYA: If you are working at the Defence Ministry, be sure not to wear “clothes that poke eye”. This was one of the many colourful descriptions of “Ethical Clothing” (etika berpakaian) that is acceptable within the ministry's standards. Netizens on social networking sites were literally ROFL, which is cyberspeak for “rolling on the floor laughing”, as they shared the link to the ministry's amusing English translation of the staff dress code on its official website. “Clothes that poke eye” is a literal translation of pakaian yang menjolok mata, which is supposed to mean revealing clothes in Bahasa Malaysia. Other finds included: “collared shirts and tight Malay civet berbutang three”, which, in Malay, is berkolar baju Melayu cekak musang berbutang tiga. Baju batik lengan panjang berkolar / cekak musang buatan Malaysia, meanwhile is translated as “long-sleeve batik shirt with collar / mongoose fight made in Malaysia”. There was also “shine closed”, which was translated from kasut bertutup, or closed-toe shoes. Another was the brief summary of the ministry's history on the website, which read: “After the withdrawal of British army, the Malaysian Government take drastic measures to increase the level of any national security threat.” The actual summary in Bahasa Malaysia read: Selepas pengunduran tentera British, Kerajaan Malaysia mengambil langkah drastik untuk meningkatkan tahap keselamatan negara dari sebarang ancaman. The ministry took down the English translated version several hours after it went widespread on Twitter and Facebook. A ministry spokesperson said a clarification has since been posted on the website, adding that page hits shot up remarkably yesterday. The clarification on the website said corrective action was being taken on the related software to ensure translations were accurate.

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I literally smiled when I read this on the local daily (on an otherwise another dour day). While my own English is, admittedly, sub-par at best, me thinks certain ministries should take the effort to do translation from Bee Em to Inglish more professionally, not just running through the translation via, just a suspicion btw, say Google Translate.

Steve Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011)

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc (formerly Apple Computer, Inc), died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 56. A little recall from my ever dimming memory. The first sight of an Apple computer is a Macintosh owned by a friend. I asked why not a PC with Windows OS? He said he wanna be different and the all in one Macintosh was easier to use. It didn't make much sense to me then. And it was expensive. Then iMac arrived on the scene. To be precise, the G3. Yes, the one which is encased in plastic translucent body shaped like an egg. That's when I really took notice of the fruit logo company. This was followed by the G4, which is kinda disappointing for me coz I didn't like the lamp like design. But when the G5 debut, oh wow. Apple has put the sexiness back into an otherwise mundane product. And it continues to do so. iPod, iPhone, and the phenomenally successful iPad. I finally got me hand on a MacBook Pro. Entry level model of course. And after a little bit of practise, yes, indeed, it is much comparatively easier to use. All in all, due to Jobs visionary innovation and driving creativity, Apple has came up with a product lineup which are practical and asthetically sexy.

911 ~ Ten Years Later....

11th September 2011. I was watching a movie on the telly when a friend called and said that one of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center was on fire. What is the title of the movie and which channel I asked her. No, she said. It was not a movie and it was on CNN. I immediately switched channel. As the images of a passenger plane being shown slamming straight onto one of the Twin Towers, while the other spewing plume of black smokes and flames, I immediately went into goosebumps. New York was being attacked, I told her. We hung up, I woke up me mom, we both watched in horror as eventually both towers collapsed. We also realised that Pentagon was being simultaneously attacked and another attempted one had crashed, foiled by the heroic sacrifices of the passengers against the hijackers. The next day, at the office, everyone was talking about it. Colleagues, customers, suppliers. At home. The images of the dust covered survivors are still fresh in my mind till today. Eventually, it emerged that a terrorist group called al-Qaeda and its leader, Osama bin Ladin, was responsible for planning and carrying out the attack. Thousands died, all innocent peoples just looking towards another day at work....firemen and policemen whom responded to the disaster were sacrificed. The 911 Attacks as it came to be known, would marked the beginning of an era whereby opposing enemies are no longer distinctive, as like in a war where two nations of opposing nationalities fought on the battlefield. Terrorists are terrifying opponents. They care not for the innocents, they are faceless and deeply rooted in extreme ideologies which can only be described as insane. Terrorist attacks are not new. These include public bombings what the IRA did. But the 911 attacks would be the most infamous and audacious as it is considered an unprecedented direct attack onto America. The attack also emboldened some of the other terrorist cells, most infamous include the two Bali bombings, claiming two hundred lives of revellers and locals. The mastermind bin Laden, was eventually located and killed by US Navy SEALs and CIA covert operation on 2nd May 2011, in Pakistan.

The Great Malaysian Food Fight.

Current Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Ng Yen Yen received much flak recently for announcing plans to "lay claim" on certain local delicacies during the launch of Malaysia International Gourmet Festival on September 16th. The local delicacies quoted in the local dailies include laksa, bak kut teh, nasi lemak, chilli crab as well as Hainanese chicken rice. Bloggers are up in arms over this announcement, particularly from across the channel, which has since laid claim to some of these foods long time ago. While I think she may be well intended and as of yesterday, has corrected what she actually meant (not patenting but promoting these local delicacies), I wonder personally how the ministry would intent to go about "proving" that some of these local fares are of this country origin. This is because, foods, generally "migrate" and "introduce" to other areas or regions as the populace move about. The literal melting pot of culture so to speak. Most of the general populace of this region shares an almost homogenised cultural identities and mix, particularly geographical regions which are deemed as Strait Settlements, such as Penang (is this name "claimed"and "patented" by the state govt yet as announced? :P), Malacca and of course, Singapore. Take laksa for example. No proven texts exist which clearly state that it is from here and not there. Yet, in this country alone, there are so many variants i.e. Assam Laksa, Curry Laksa, Laksa Kelantan aka Laksam, Laksa Johor, Laksa Sarawak (for a full list, I think I would need to check out Laksa Shack). I think as a food is introduced, it is generally "tweek" to suit the general population taste based on acceptance. I wonder if variation counts? And what about the variation in name but consist of same cooking method? And the cook? Does it has to be a local? Most hawkers in KL consists of employed Burmese anyway...Now, if I have my way, here's a list of hawker fare I would attempt to "claim" (since lately, "claim" has been in vogue in the local news, beginning with Indonesia "claim" on Negara Ku as theirs, the nation via Discovery Channel embarrassingly "portray" Balinese Dance as originated from here, state govt "claim" on the name Penang :)).

a) Penang(R) Kueh Chap(C). This low profile hawker fare is slowly becoming hard to find, except in old town sections or wet markets. Different from the more popular Sarawak or Southern variety, the soup and "spare parts" are "derived" from ducks. And my goodness, it is veli ho liau!

b) Chee Cheong Fun(C). There are the Teluk Intan type, normal yong tau foo type, and my fav, Penang(R) type which is banjir-ed in heavenly shrimp paste heh.

c) Penang(R) Curry Mee(C) which contain cockles, shrimps, taufoo pok, taugeh and most importantly, the coagulated pig's blood (the singular most important differentiatng factor). Perhaps the most widely "copied" version of all time.

d) Penang((R) Lor Mee(C). Again, the type of noodle use, is different from the mid to southern region. In Penang(R), yellow noodles or beehoon is used instead of the standard flat noodle variety. The right combination of ngor hiang powder and starch are used to create the unique gooey gravy like soup. And again it tastes different from its southern cousin, maybe a tad more tastier. Order it with extra pork intestine. crispy fried lard plus some garlic and vinegar, whoa, instant food high!

e) Ipoh(TM) Taugeh Chicken Rice(C). Nothing beats the taste of a steamed chicken bath generously in a sea of peanut oil + soy sauce.

f) Ramly(R) Burger Special(C) with Cheese and Egg Super Special(TM). The original fast food since '79. Fuelled poor soul like me during the college days. Fuel those who crave for a late night snack. Dunk out in Worcestershire sauce, margarine, mayonnaise, tomato and chilli sauces, and cucumbers, onions and cabbage...yummy. Some might say, the idea of local indie, punks and DIY are also deeply rooted in those one stall mobile burger joint. Rawk on, brader!

g) Kajang Satay(C). As an old school satay lover, I staunchly believes all satays must have at least a portion of chicken skin or fat. At least up to recently, most Kajang satays, known for its generous portion, tender meats and secret recipied peanut sauces, are so darn delicious.

Anyhoo, I guess at the end of the day, it is the taste which counts, not rubber stamping and prove where so ever the said foods originated from.

French "Spiderman" Finally Conquer The Twin Towers.

Alain Robert, 47, a self styled dare devil climber of tall buildings around the world, finally made it to the top of this country's Petronas Twin Towers on yesterday. After being arrested twice by the local law enforcers for his two, previous obviously uncompleted attempts, he finally managed to complete the climbing in the wee hour of the morning as the security guards are probably sleeping ;) and reached the top in an hour and 45 minutes. He is currently being held by the police after the security guards took him in (whom I guessed woke up in time to witness Robert's achievement) and no news on whether he would be charged with anything. Hopefully not caning :P

Update (5th Sept 09) : Alain is eventually fined MYR 2000 with promise not to climb another building in this country again.

Culinary Cruelty.

Read with interest on Monday, an article about treatment of animals for culinary delights. Being a self confessed "meat" eater, I admit some of the stories being highlighted were kinda "disturbing".

a) Foie Gras i.e. goose liver. Or used to be goose liver until lately when it is now generally duck liver instead. Considered French gourmet food, it is made by "force-feeding corn-based meal to farmed ducks and geese over a few months so that their livers swell with fat." I tasted foie gras only once, being so expensive but more importantly, I hated the taste...

b) Shark Fin. OK, this one I know. Sharks are "harvested" for their fins, for Chinese culinary delight, shark fin soup, while still alive and then dumped back to the sea to die. I still eats shark fin soup...the fin its self is tasteless, like I mentioned before, like a card board. Maybe one day they would be able to forgo the fin and replace it with something else instead.

c) Frog Legs. New knowledge. It stated, "Sometimes the frog is skinned before its legs are chopped off. Witnesses say that they can actually hear the frogs shrieking as they are butchered, and many of the amphibians are still alive long after their legs have been removed." Might be true, as with the practise of cooking a fish, the dishes are usually still "alive" before putting into the frying pan in order to preserve "freshness". What really turns me off are not these, but from what an uncle shared with me when he happened to be at his friends frog farm where he witnessed these frogs are actually mired in their own mucks and whats not, in order to breed the maggots which they feeds on....This is one of my favourite dishes, particularly when stir fry over ginger or as porridge.

d) Wagyu Beef. New knowledge. It says, Australian cattle rancher David Blackmore, one of the few Westerners to have visited Japanese farms several times, told Gourmet magazine in a 2007 article: “They (the cattle) get bored and go off their feed. Their gut stops working. The best way to start their gut working again is to give them a bottle of beer. “The steers have been lying in their own manure. ... Wagyu can also get a lot of joint swelling. I can imagine that the farmers would be massaging joints so they could get the animals off to market.” Oh darn, I love wagyu beef steaks...

e) Large Eggs. The article said, "Even choosing large eggs is considered cruel. The British Free Range Producers Association told the British press early this year that it was painful for hens to lay larger eggs. The association recommended that consumers buy medium eggs instead, adding that they also taste better and are less “watery” than larger ones. Speaking of eggs, spare a thought for the egg-laying chicken in intensive farming. It spends its whole adult life with four other hens in a battery cage whose floor is the size of this open newspaper." Ok, sticking to ayam kampung eggs...if they were more easily available.

f) Eating babies. It states, "Both veal and suckling pig are meats from baby animals. In battery farming, the calves are confined to crates, usually measuring 60cm wide, in which they cannot turn around, stretch their limbs or even lie down comfortably. They are fed with watery powdered milk to deliberately induce borderline anaemia and thus, tender white meat." And I just had a nice, sucking pig for dinner during Dad's birthday...

Nice to have such article highlighted. Now I can make informed choice when it comes to food...but sometimes, temptation, especially of culinary nature, is abit hard to resist.

Man On The Moon : 40 Years.

"That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind."

~ Neil Armstrong, 2:56 UTC July 21, 1969.

If you believed

they put a man on the moon,

man on the moon.

If you believe

there's nothing up my sleeve,

then nothing is cool.

~ R.E.M. "Man On The Moon"

From Wiki,

"The Apollo 11 mission was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. It was the fifth human spaceflight of Project Apollo and the third human voyage to the Moon. Launched on July 16, 1969, it carried Mission Commander Neil Alden Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michae Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin Eugene 'Buzz' Aldrin, Jr. On July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin became the first humans to land on the Moon, while Collins orbited above."

Michael Jackson's Ghost?

Even in death, strange rumours surrounding the late King Of Pop still circulates like an un quenchable wild fire, including him touring as a hologram for the upcoming tour as well as having his brain removed after his death. And the latest may just top it all. It was first reported by British tabloid The Sun and since then, millions had hit the Internet for a view of the video. Not only because it was caught on tape, it was part of the CNN Larry King Live "Inside Neverland" programme of which the host Larry King was interviewing Jermaine Jackson, one of MJ's brothers and Mika Brando (son of the late Marlon Brando), who was a close friend of MJ, was being interviewed while walking through the late King Of Pop former abode. Roughly about eight and a half minutes into the interview, shadowy figure was observed passing the end of a corridor whilst they were in MJ's bedroom. Furthermore, the newsman and the cameraman failed to notice the shadow when they were filming. The believers are claiming that this is the "ghost" of MJ. The sceptics are saying it was just that, a shadow, of some one walking by a window. Some even say it was some sort of sick joke. Incidentally, Ghosts is a short film starring MJ and directed by late film director and special effects guru Stan Winston back in 1997. I say, just leave the King alone and let him rest in peace.

Killer Fish In Lake Kenyir?

A local daily carries an article today which caught my eye. It says that the recent death of two park rangers in Lake Kenyir was possibly caused by a killer/monster fish suspected lurking within the depths of the man-made lake since it was built as part of the Kenyir Dam more than 30 years ago.

Located at the eastern state of Terengganu, the lake is surrounded by forest reserves and will also lead to the National Park, reputably one of the oldest tropical forest in the nation. It is reputably the biggest man-made lake in SEA, with coverage of about 300 plus islands spreading out within the water catchments area of nearly 38,000 hectares. The biggest island is estimated to be as big as the Lion City or the Pearl Of The Orient. It got its name from Kenyir River, which now lies beneath the lake after it is filled with rainfalls. Neolithic era artifacts and tools had been discovered from the area. The deepest point is said to be around 140 metres.

Now back to the article. It said that the orang asli elders had suspected that the Ikan Naga (dragon fish) probably caused the boat to capsize. It was also highlighted that foreign workers had seen the creature during the construction of the dam back in mid 70s. An eyewitness of the recent incident said the boat was spinning around and could not see the victims anywhere. The Ikan Naga is shrouded in myth and folklore, much like Loch Ness and other lake monsters of the world. Its girth alone is said to be 4 meters with colorful sharp fins and scales like a shark. Uh...I thought shark does not possess scales...Let me indulge in a little novice/x-file investigation... The lake contains lots of species of freshwater fish like Baung, Toman, Kelisa, Lampam and Kelah and one of the main attraction of the lake is sports fishing. Fish like Toman aka Giant Snakehead (Channa micropeltes) could grow to a metre long and is a ferocious fish ( like a freshwater barracuda) with muddy taste meat (but still it is a popular meal locally). But it would not be able to tilt or ram a boat. Hmm...what about remote possibility of invasive species? With the proliferation of exotic animal trade globally (one could pretty much get any animal provided one got da mulah), some pet owners could have gotten bored of their animals and discarded it. Possibly flushed down into the drain or toilet (aligator movies and urban myth) and gain access to the lake? Long shot chances. I wonder what sort of animal will it be? It gotta fit the description that's for sure. From the name the elders called it, which is Ikan Naga, so it must be dragon-like fish. And have scales and colorful sharp fins. In freshwater of course.

Here's a personal list of possible contenders :

a) Arowana (Sceleropages Formosus) ~ grows up to 1 metre. Arowana belongs to the primitive bony fishes family and famous as ornamental fish. Its natural habitat includes this country. However, there has been no report of an arowana growing bigger than a metre.

b) Arapaima (Arapaima Gigas) ~ grows up to 2.5 metres (4 metres reported but not verified). A famous giant freshwater fish from Amazon, it has been increasingly available in the pet trades as well as being introduced as sport fish locally. Its head is compressed with scales covering the entire body. Part of the primitive bony fishes family. Eats other fishes but known to prey on water fowl as well.

c) Giant Mekong Catfish (Pangsasianodon Gigas) ~ grows up to 3 metres. It is a herbivore, feeding mostly on plants and algae. Indigenous to the Mekong Delta.

d) Chinese Paddlefish (Psephurus Gladius) ~ grows up to 5 metres (7 metres reported but unverified). With spatula like mouth, elongated shape. Feeds on zoo plankton. Belongs to the primitive ray finned fishes family. However, feared to be extinct as no adult nor juvenile has been sighted or caught since 2003. Confined to the Yangtze River. Reason of possible extinction? The construction of the Gezhouba Dam and The Three Gorges Dam.

e) Alligator Gar (Atractosteus Spatula) ~ grows up to 3 metres. A true monster, these gars have rows of sharp teeth to snap and hold their prey. Its head looks like the Indian Gharial crocodile, with armor-like body scales all over. Belongs to the primitive bony fishes family. Eat fishes but known to eat turtles and water fowls as well. Found in Northern and Central America but readily available in pet trades.

f) Giant Stingray (?) ~ grows up to 5 metres. Diet consists mainly of crustaceans. Would make a nice ikan bakar meal with belacan lasting me several weeks...However, it has been reported that the giant stingrays may pull boats upstream or even underwater. Said to have been found in this country as well as part of Australia and nations surrounding the Mekong Delta.

g) Bichirs (family : Polypteridae) ~ grow up to 3 feet. Not a contender in terms of size but it really looks like a dragon, particularly when it is swimming. Covers with scales like armor. Also belongs to the bony fishes family.

Other giants include the Chinese Sturgeons (5 metres), Lake Sturgeons (2 metres), river catfish (1.5 metre) and Eurasian Trout (2 metres).

So, which one would fit the bill? I would love to say the stingray but it lack scales and doesn't look dragon-like. With the exception of river catfish which are found aplenty locally, the giant version is confined to the Mekong River system and is endangered. Sturgeons are out as well coz they are anadromous ie lives in saltwater sea and only comes to freshwater to breed. There is no trout in tropical countries...the paddle fish may be extinct in their own habitat, least it would come to the country's man made lake for holiday. Arowana and toman very very rarely reach 1 metre. That leaves only the gar and arapaima. But still it would not be large enough to capsize or tilt a boat. The fantasy part of me wants to imagine that perhaps there is, by some freak of nature, an arapaima or gar which someone had discarded into the lake 30 years ago, has grown to a gigantic size. But the truth is that no fishes, irregardless how plentiful their natural diets are available to them, would grown bigger than what they should. Maybe fatter but never bigger. Ever seen a 15 feet man, irregardless how much he eats? Also, there is the matter of perspective. I have seen an adult 2 metres arapaima and man, it is scary. Doesn't looks like 2 metres at all...much bigger than that. But it's all in my mind and the fact remains it is 2 metres. More importantly, I personally felt that if there were to be some monster fishes lurking around, it would not be able to hide themselves for long. Someone would have caught it earlier (which reminds me of the Bigfoot reports several years ago, I wonder what happen to it?).

Microsoft's “Class Invariants By Abstract Interpretation”

Every now and then we have some marketing or branding blunders which use words representing something totally different in other languages. Even some Marketing or Promotional Strategy 101 dedicated an entire chapter to it. I could not recall historically any blunders on this scale which involves my mother tongue, Hokkien. It involves one of Microsoft's title of an academic paper by a researcher prior to joining the organisation called "Class Invariants By Abstract Interpretation" which if you know Hokkien (irregardless Northern or Southern) and Bahasa Melayu, the acronym translated to a highly vulgar word in reference to the female genital, usually use to swear at others. According to the latest source, Microsoft allows their researchers to post their past papers on their site, to enable the public to search across these researchers’ entire body of prior work. Microsoft also explains that the acronym which causes so much cyberlaughter across blogosphere, particularly from Pearl Of The Orient state all the way down to the Lion City State is not one of their apps or products (lucky them!), is unintentional and will be looking into removing it shortly. I wonder if the local employees of Microsoft is aware this rip roaring subject. And local stand up comedians must be having time of their life taking potshots at Microsoft.

Happy Wesak Day 2009.

Just as a fletcher straightens

an arrow shaft,

even so the discerning man

straightens his mind -

so fickle and unsteady,

so difficult to guard and control.

~ The Mind, Dhammapada.

the craving of one given to heedless living

grows like a creeper

like the monkey seeking fruits

in the forest

he leaps from life to life

(tasting the fruit of his Karma)

~ Craving, Dhammapada.

Labour Day 2009.

Every 1st of May is designated Labour Day. What is the significance of this day? All I know is that it is an annual public holiday which means no need to go to school, no need to go to work. Can slack off. According to Wiki, "Labour Day or Labor Day is an annual holiday celebrated all over the world that resulted from the labour union movement, to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. The majority of countries celebrate Labour Day on May 1st, and it is popularly known as May Day and International Workers' Day. The celebration of Labour Day has its origins in the Eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest."

So what is Eight-hour day movement? Again, to directly quote from Wiki, "The eight-hour day movement or 40-hour week movement, also known as the short-time movement, had its origins in the Industrial Revolution in Britain, where industrial production in large factories transformed working life and imposed long hours and poor working conditions. With working conditions unregulated, the health, welfare and morale of working people suffered. The exploitation of child labour was common. The working day could range from 10 to 16 hours for six days a week. Robert Owen had raised the demand for a ten-hour day in 1810, and instituted it in his socialist enterprise at New Lanark. By 1817 he had formulated the goal of the eight-hour day and coined the slogan Eight hours labour, Eight hours recreation, Eight hours rest." Robert Owen, a Welsh (14 May 1771–17 Nov 1858) was a social reformer and one of the founders of socialism and the cooperative movement.

As a celebration of world labor movement, International Worker Days "commonly sees organized street demonstrations and street marches by millions of working people and their labour unions throughout most of the countries of the world" to quote from Wiki.

Although synonymous with International Worker Days or Labour Day, an interesting fact is that there is a different origin for May Day as well why May 1st. According to Wiki, "As a day of celebration the holiday has ancient origins, and it can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times. Many of these customs are due to May Day being a cross-quarter day, meaning that in the Northern Hemisphere it falls approximately halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. May Day marks the end of the half of the year in the Northern hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations, regardless of the locally prevalent political or religious establishment. As Europe became Christianized the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either changed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were replaced by new Christian holidays as with Christmas, Easter, and All Saint's Day. In the twentieth century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Day as a pagan religious festival again." Interesting...

Income Tax Submission.

The annual income tax submission process is quite tedious for me. First, I have to go all the way to Shah Alam Plaza Perangsang enduring the traffic. Then, I would have to go in loop searching for a place to park. Finally, parking at the nearby mall, I would have to walk abit. At the income tax office, I would have to wait for about an hour. This year, I decided to follow the rest of the population to submit directly to their website. They gave me the PIN and it is way easier. I could quickly amend the numbers if I leave something out. The staffs are stern looking but ok, at least they try to help and provide as much infos as possible. The only problem is that when I called to confirm the location of the office, it is always on hold and busy.

Earth Hour 2009

Earth Hour 2009...Esther and I actually have a small discussion on whether to follow suit on the unrelenting media barrages on the event today, to switch off all electrical lights between 8.30pm to 9.30pm. We decided not to, because we believe the entire event is too hyped up. Celebrities, local starlets all over the local media about their supposedly environmental inspiration and stuff. Boring... And yet we all still drive up the carbon emission on daily basis...just look at the early rush hour during weekdays...We want to chip in, for the sake of our kids and help but not in such manner...if everybody REALLY wants to help sustain or even rejuvenate the depleting resources of the planet, everyone should do it on REGULAR basis, and the entire socio-political groups in this country should rally for a change...for real. Reduce consumption and waste, recycle, create more green lungs...there is so many ways to go about it and if only there is a collective consciousness to drive it on REGULAR basis, then Earth...no, our kids and us, might still have a chance to savour what She could offer.

Voluntary Separation Scheme...

Well, woke up to an unpleasant news of being targeted as one of the employees "recommended" for voluntary separation scheme (VSS). After working for about 6 years at this steel mill, a local arm of a famous Australian coating line located in Kapar, the business went from bad to worse within 2 quarters after riding high for a period of 6 months before that. Plagued with tens of thousands tons of steel coils, purchased at a higher market price before the commodities and global economic meltdown, the business is now trying to cope with losses in millions (not including USD exchange rate losses) by initiating a first wave of costs cut back by offering VSS to its permanent employees across the board. Well, not across the board anyway.

To my surprise, irregardless of what the official communication was, actually there are a bunch of employees being "tagged" for "highly recommended" to take VSS. I am one of them. The reason behind this is quite murky. That's the problem. VSS is voluntary, not via indirect duress of being asked to go for a one on one meeting with a sales manager for a "chat". I think that took the dignity out of the whole process. I did not debate in length the reason for being asked so but the situation is this, if the VSS is not fully subscribe to its desired number of employees, and meet the so-called "forecast" to sustain the business, since they are scaling back its fiscal budget, thus creating redundancy, the second wave to be considered would be retrenchment. And in between that, those "tagged" would be indirectly put into "cold storage". Better to take VSS right? However, it is a highly risky move for me as I have a small family to raise, as well as with the economic situation right now, would I be able to bounce back into the labour market in time?

Ah well, que sera sera, I have had enough of all the shenanigans anyway. Hope to roll with the punches now...

Talcum Powder Causing Ovarian Cancer...

Today's newspapers and yesterday news carried one of the articles about a warning from a local consumer association body about the usage of talcum powder which could cause cancer, in particular ovarian cancer. The president cited a study from the Harvard Medical School in the United States that found, from a sample of more than 3,000 women, that those using talcum once a week had a 36% higher risk of getting ovarian cancer while those using talcum daily faced a 41% higher risk. A study also revealed that the risk was greater still for those with a certain genetic profile.That is shocking, as most of my life, I have been using talcum powder, almost on daily basis, coz it is soothing and cooling. But off course the study is based its effect on female instead of male. It is also very popular amongst babies, after shower, would apply it on Chloe and Dylan. The article mentioned about the carcinogenic content of talcum powder, pointing it to this one ingredient called "talc". Talc contains "magnesium trisilicate hydroxide". This mineral is said to contain minute fibres that are very similar to asbestos, a verified substance known to be highly carcinogenic. When applied on the female genital areas, it may "migrate" to the reproductive system and causes the cancer. I wonder the effect if we happen to indirectly inhale the powder? Funny, as a smoker, I thought of this, even though I have been abusing my own lungs for years...The consumer body recommended to avoid using talcum powder and switch to bedak sejuk, which is made from rice flour or corn starch base ingredient. As a temporary measure, until further informations could be obtained, Mom (who takes such news seriously, irrregardless whether the report is on female gender only) asks us to stopped using talcum powder and started to bring out those bedak sejuks for the kids. I couldn't cos I'll ended up looking like someone from the Chinese Opera...

Cinema Ticket Proposed Price Hike

I used to watch alot of movies at the cinema, mostly with bunch of mates and if its really good, then on my own. I remembered price for a ticket costs MYR3. "First Class" special (means on the 1st level foyer) costs MYR5. Of course that was more than 20 years ago. Mostly in Penang. There's no GSE nor Cineplex, only Rex, Odeon, Federal, Capitol. And it would smelt of funky stale aromas of sweat, BO and ciggerettes (yes, the rule was not enforced and smokers who craved for a stick will light it away in the midst of Rambo mowing down some VCs). Peanut shells, kuacis and sotongs' wrappers would be everywhere on the floor. Hygiene was the furthest thing away from the mind of a cinema operator. I particularly liked the snack where they had steamed bun, like a hot dog bun, sandwiched with either bak kua or chicken floss, then top up with some deliciously tasty gravy. There used to be someone with a tray of snacks and ice-creams moving around the cinema hawking those stuffs as well. Worse was when someone stuck a stale bubblegum or Wrigleys on the seat or threw on the floor whereby after the movie on the way out, you realised that the traction of your MYR250 Reebok Pump (it was in vogue back then) had increased tremendously. If you sat on that thing for nearly 90 minutes, it would take forever to wash it out. And the seat...heh, the self folding seat's spring was so unpredictable, sometimes it could be coiled so tight that it would fold you in to half if you don't positioned yourself properly. Sometimes, it would be so loose, that if you were late to enter, the moment you found your seat in the pitch darkness, it would came down with a deftening thud, which of course ellicted some unsavoury muttering from fellow moviegoers. Another memorable moment was the cinema ushers. They usually held a torchlight to assist moviegoers to find their seat numbers. But more often than not, they would shine those lights directly onto your face, blinding you in the process. Or some funky ones would rotate their lights, turning the hall into some sort of pseudo disco hall. I remembered going with my cousins back in Teluk Intan, the Rex cinema there even had tikus scampering here and there. Also, should bring a can of Morteen to keep the mosquitos away. Posters were painted instead of graphically rendered accurate work of art. But the painters were not bad then. Its art, if you could find one. Pop art I think. And there would always be some discounts during the last leg of the movies' run. It would say "Last Few Days", then "Last Day". That's then.

Now, cinemas are known as cineplex, with at least 10 screening halls under one roof. Special halls come with massaging chairs and reclining seats, with a price of course. Several movies are being offered simultanously, with no warning of when it is going to end its run. The tickets were imprinted with codes instead of hand written marvel on a piece of flimsy paper. No more unsavoury smells (although the person next to you could be heavily covered with the oh so boring CK One, enough to CK-fied the entire row), no more rodents (except human versions ~ usually a) when watching some cult movies like say, Star Wars, the so-called self appointed expert/nerd would furiously give comment to his fellow nerd peers, often loud enough to derail all the excitement of a storyline, b) screaming gfs who just like to outscream the actresses at every turn, c) laughing maniacs, who laughed at the top of their lung at comedies, d) vibrators, pricks who like to shake their legs or kick the back of your seats).

Now, would I pay for the proposed MYR 20 for foreign movies instead of the current MYR 10? Maybe...but that movie better be darn good! And cheaper rate for domestic movies, to boost the box office intake? I think they are missing the point. And the point is, if somehow the domestic movies could be as good, or better, it doesn't matter how you gonna charge the audience to re-coup the costs...