From Whence Comes My Help?

In times of troubles and need, where do I seek my help from? Where does my solace come from?

I was once given a self made bookmark by a girl whom I was interested in. This was about 15 years ago. The bookmark had a verse in it. It was a silver bookmark with engravings of the verse in it. Of course, given a gift by someone I had feelings for probably made it the greatest gift in the world back then. 

I hadn't kept in touch with her ever since after high school and what she was doing now is something I wouldn't know. The bookmark may have been gone. But what remained is the verse in the bookmark and how it speaks to me everytime I read it or recited in church or anywhere for that matter. 

And I share this psalm with the lot of you and hope that it gives you the strength and assurance, as it has given me the same:- 

Psalm 121 (NKJV) 

God the Help of Those Who Seek Him

A Song of the Ascents 

I will lift up my eyes to the hills

From whence comes my help?

My help comes from the Lord, 

Who made heaven and earth

He will not allow your foot to be moved; 

He who keeps you will not slumber. 

Behold, He who keeps Israel

Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper; 

The Lord is your shade at your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day, 

Nor the moon by night.

The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; 

He shall preserve your soul.

The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in

From this time forth and even forevermore. 

2012 - In retrospect

After a 4 month hiatus, I'm breaking the duck once more. 

It's been a rally, the past 6 months. More so, it had a lot to do with work. Being a litigator is not easy. I've thought I knew the costs of being one. And I'm reminded once more of how tiring it can be. Managing an average of 5-6 hours of sleep a day (I know, some people say that it's quite a lot and perhaps it is), sleepless nights aren't much fun especially waking up in the weee hours of the morning and just staring into deep space, counting sheep, hoping that you fall asleep once again without much fuss. 

But all that said and done and looking back at those times, it wasn't so bad afterall. We eventually survive. We will survive, since we live on hope even when hope seems to be nothing but a tiny flicker, yet, we latch on to it to get through the night. :) 

It was a roller-coaster year indeed, and also a year which sets out the foundations for my decision making and risk taking. Not yet, but I will get there very soon.

So, in retrospect, here are my bests and worsts of 2012

Movies

Seriously, this is a really tough decision to make..........nah. I'm just kidding. I should have perhaps chosen an Oscar contender, but alas, I'm bias and I follow my heart. I

It would be, yes you would have perhaps guessed it, The Dark Knight Rises. It's not as good as its predecessor, The Dark Knight, but it's an epic on its own. 

 

Don't get me wrong. I love many other movies as well. And Avengers would have been a close second. But comparatively, the intensity and drama didn't match the aforesaid Dark Knight who remains as brooding and conflicted as ever. 

Other notable movie mentions which are favourites of mine are The Amazing Spider-man, Judge Dredd and Moonrise Kingdom.

My favourite comedies, I've watched many comedies this year but Sacha Baron Cohen's The Dictator definitely takes the cake for it. I expected it to be another Borat-ish mockumentary but was quite delighted to find that there is a proper story set out The Dictator. So it has my vote for favourite comedy of the year, followed by Ted (seriously, who can resist a potty mouthed teddy bear?) and Will Ferrell's The Campaign (great stuff and a parody of the American election which is quite endearing). 

Music

Now....we were suppose to go to Singapore to watch the Foo Fighters. Tickets were bought and plans were made. Alas Dave Grohl had a really bad throat infection and lost his voice. Monies were refunded, but it was a waste cause it would have been an awesome concert. 

To compensate the misfortune, I bought myself L'arc En Ciel tickets for their concert in Singapore. I was gearing up for that so much so that I started downloading the music which was kept in cassette form by me, which was eventually disposed off. So yes, it was downloads and new L'arc En Ciel album acquisitions. 

But alas.......national service came a-calling. And on 28 April 2012, on the day of the L'arc En Ciel concert, BERSIH 3.0 happened (which will be covered below). And I would miss L'arc En Ciel's first and perhaps only ever tour in South East Asia. Damn.........

Anyhow, no regrets going for Bersih 3.0. I would have decided to go for Bersih 3.0 anyway. 

But the Avenged Sevenfold  (A7X) concert more than compensated for the above bereavement and grief of missing out on two concerts thus far. The Avenged Sevenfold was really tight and each beat was played out precisely! 

I never was a fan of Avenged Sevenfold and was only there so that I get to see a concert in 2012. But like many other prudent people going concerts, we listened as much as we can to AX7 and slowly but surely, I developed a liking for them. And on that day of the concert it was a done deal. I was an official fan of A7X. Energetic, frenetic and I wished I could sing more of their songs at the concert, but I can't cause I'm not familiar with the lyrics. Anyway, here's a video for you if you are either curious or interested.

But the best album, that I've bought for myself, would definitely be this one:-

Tempered Mental's Pax Automata

I've been anticipating their follow up album after The View From Here. I loved their previous album and the EP (Honestly) way way earlier. But this one transcends my expectations. The songs were executed with perfect timing and pinpoint accuracy. The songs were edgy and tight. And progressive rock never sounded so good. Melina was as usual, slapping the bass and singing where no men (or women) can master. Except Les Claypool of course. Jack's guitar shredding puts him on top as one of the best (and technical) players this side of Malaysia. And Jimmy does what he does best, keep the timing tight and attack when needed. Purely technical but enjoyable and rocking stuff. I had the opportunity to watch them launch Pax Automata and what an experience it was. I've been to many Tempered Mental outings but this one was easily the best. Malaysia's best band in my humble opinion.

So that's my album of 2012. Yes Sir. Crap. Can't upload any videos from the launch though. :(

Events

There were many events that had happened over the year. There were some weddings. There were some wakes and funerals. There were performances. And then there were demonstrations. 
The biggest event for me in 2012 would be the Bersih 3.0 rally. 5 years down after the first Bersih rally back in 10 November 2007, the people marched on for cleaner elections and a more transparent process. I have in my own words documented this in my post here.
In light of the upcoming general elections, pressure needed to be asserted to ensure that the terms of the Memorandum from Bersih 2.0 will be clearly adhered to. Dato' Ambiga, chair of the Bersih coalition had warned that the upcoming elections would be the dirtiest. From the events that happened since the political tsunami of 2008, one would not challenge that assertion. 
Things are changing still and the process will be even more evident. But once again, it was encouraging to see familiar faces once more (veterans of the Bersih rallies, and I'm one of them if I do say so meself :) nyahahah) and new faces who have joined in to voice their concerns of the decadence of the ruling coalition.
Speculation on the dates for the general elections were pushed further and we may see experience the general elections in the first (or second quarter) of 2013. We will be ready then. And hopefully we see more change happening. The good fight continues on....

The other notable event would be the KL Bar Charity Night. SYB performed once more. I should be blogging about this as a tribute to our cover band. But here's the nutshell of it. It was a great night. We played our hearts out. The crowd was supportive and enjoyed our music (hopefully) and we hope we will continue to play for more events in the future. 

 We played a few covers. 6 in all. The list goes like this:-
1. King of Wishful Thinking by Go West
2. Rolling in the Deep by Adele
3. Don't Stop Believing by Journey 
4. Zombie by Cranberries
5. That's What You Get by Paramore and 
6. I Dare You to Move by Switchfoot

But here's 3 of the videos. I will perhaps post the rest up in another posts. If anything we're just a cover band, so we're not perfect :D



The lovely Raja Nadia Sabrina was our guest singer for two of the songs. This one is Zombie



Paramore's That's What you Get

and then below, Swtichfoot's Dare You to Move



Hopefully I get all the videos of SYB and I can post up a full song list in my next post. Whether you like it or not! Muahahah!

By the way, we also performed at the KLCC Plenary Hall. Michael Bolton held a concert there 3 weeks later. Just saying. 

Also notable was my trip to South Korea. It was an experience, culturally and err socially. Its a fact, there are many good looking people in Korea, and how do they all look so good? :) Well........it's your guess. But I enjoyed every bit of the trip; from the food I've tasted, from the wonderful places we visited and the people we meet along the way. Heck, given a chance I would go back there once more. Then again, there are many places I've yet to step foot on. Still the idea is an idea kept in view. 
We traveled cheaply and backpacked as much as we can. It made the whole trip even more worthwhile. 

Now here's the funny thing. Up this part, I can no longer posts any pictures. Probably I overused my quota of pictures for 2012. Hahaha. Oh well, just my luck. 

Oh yeah. And St Michael's had it's centenary dinner finally. It was a gathering of familiar faces. Ancient and young. Alumnis of La Salle who made their way from all over not only the country but from the globe as well. We gathered, we sang, we feast and we drank. And I'm reminded of why it is possibly the best school on Earth, ahahah (We Michaelians are a proud lot). And it has been an honour to have spend the best (and worst days) of my studying life in St Michael. 

To that I say, Quis Ut Deus (who is like God?)!

World Events 

Obama wins the presidential elections and will yet serve another term. Joy to the Democrats. Not so the Republicans. 

There were tragic events as well. Notably, two shocking and shooting events in the US. 
The first in Aurora Colorado where a lone gunman fired into a movie theatre whilst showing the Dark Knight Rises. The gunman was arrested. The identity of the person was later revealed to be James Eagen Holmes. His trial is still and on-going event. 

And then there was the shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. Reminiscent of the Columbine massacre in 1999, only this time, it's in an elementary school. The death toll and fatalities was about 20 odd children and 2 adults. The lone gunman, Adam Lanza committed suicide after the shooting before help arrived. 



Whilst I read about this and vicariously experience the tragedy, one can not help but ponder once again on what is it that drives some people to the edge. Over these episodes, questions arose, on whether gun enforcement should be stricter, or whether these gunmen are themselves victim of social ills? 

In India in December, 2012, notably the brutal sexual assault of an medical student on board a bus (her friend was assaulted as well) and thrown off a moving bus has sparked outrage in the heart of India. It was one of the most crushing and heartbreaking news of 2012, on how the student cling on for life after the assault only to die 13 days later in a Singaporean Hospital. We can only hope that this event, would have sparked not just an outrage but also spark reforms on what seems to be the chauvinistic attitude towards women. Not just in India, but around the world, to strip down the chauvinistic attitude that men in some archaic nations (including ours) have always harboured and to pound in them the humility and respect that they owe women around the world. 

Ok, I felt kinda depressed penning down the last bit. 

On a sunnier note.....

Sports

On the sporting front, Manchester United lost the title to their noisy neighbours, Manchester City. Was it shocking? Not really. The most shocking thing was of course how United lost the lead whilst ahead by quite a margin by losing game after game. But the title was tightly contested nevertheless and in the end, the title was won on goal difference. 
We were in South Korea in the district of Itaewon (not many EPL fans in Korea I reckon) drinking our beers and drowned our sorrows when QPR conveniently lost to City in the dying minutes. A draw would have sufficed but at the end of the day it was not to be. 
So the noisy neighbours take the 2011/2012 title and United are left reeling. Of course, now, with the acquisition of Robin Van Persie at the expense of Arsenal, things are looking bright once more. Lets hope it stays that way. 

And then our Dato' Lee Chong Wei put up a gallant fight but was unable to deny his arch-nemesis and friend, Lin Dan of China from taking home the gold medal at the Olympics. 
That was my highlight of the Olympics. :) Wished I could remember the other medalists, but not at the top of my head right now. 

And Spain prove itself to be a formidable force once more in football by trashing the Italians 4-0 in the finals. Not only are they the World Champions but they remain the unbeaten champs of European football. A feat not easy or unprecedented even, that a team would win 3 consecutive championships. Spain has come of age and are no longer playing second fiddle to the powerhouses of old, i.e. Germany and Italy. I supported the Netherlands in this one. But they couldn't kick themselves into second gear and bowed out horribly without any point. They came with great expectations but collapsed under the burden of that expectation. 

Below are the highlights of the final. Watch how Italy is made mincemeat by the Spaniards.



Conclusion

The ancient Mayans predicted that the world would end in 21.12.12. It didn't. We survived the 'apocalypse'. But having said that, we are in our last days anyway, so it's just a matter of time.
But anyway, with 2012 gone and I've resigned from my current job, changes will come, rest assured. New challenges will be ever present. And I will continue blogging as long as I can with the things that interest me. 


And I end 2012 with this:-

2012, an epic, I have not,

But a rhyme or two,

A ponder, a thought.

It brought the worst,

And the best of times,

In friendships and fellowships,

And brotherhoods that bind.

Events that ensue,

Of wakes and weddings,

Of life and death,

Of funerals and blessings.

The successes and joy,  

Together we shared,

And tragedies that ensued,

In solidarity to bear.

Of hopes and dreams,

That may have fall short,

Of lessons we learnt,

Let them not be forgot.

So we bring new hope,

In the days to come,

Of planned resolutions,

May they be done.

As I shut the doors,

For a year gone by,

And I usher in a new year,

With a smile and a sigh.

A memorable 2012,

Has it at all not been,

Happy New Years to all,

Happy 2013.

My grammar sucks. Bite me.

Writing a blogpost whilst stuck in jam in KL city

So I'm stuck in KL city.
I'm still stuck in a jam as Im writing this.
The jam is so bad I have just finished listening to a Bad Religion album. The whole album on the same road.
And my friend wanted to see me write a post in the jam.
So, I did.
I'm still stuck in the jam even after writing this post

Avenged Awesome Sevenfold

This has been a long time coming, but I finally did this concert review. 

So i missed the L'arc En Ciel concert on 28 April. I mean, I was really gearing up for that. Listening to the old stuff, buying the new stuff, downloading the other stuff, looking up the lyrics, though I have absolutely no idea what they were singing (without translation of course). I mean really, I wanted to go for that. But then Bersih 3.0 came and went. 

My only saving grace was the Avenged Sevenfold concert on 29 April. I was half hearted into it. Daren gave me an entire mp3 CD worth of Avenged Sevenfold songs. I listened to some, but I was listening more to L'arc En Ciel songs just so that I'm familiar with them. 

OK. So I listened to some songs from the A7X CD and there were some that I really liked. Afterlife, Beast and the Harlot, Nightmare, Buried Alive. And then Colin introduced me to the really epic musical sounding piece titled A little Piece of Heaven. Sounded corny but when the metal bits kicked in, it was hardrockin'....and funny at the same time. But that was about it. Nothing more than that. 

So i went to the concert without knowing the names of the band members. OK, to be honest, I heard of Zacky Vengeance and M Shadows. But that was about it. And the ex-drummer was called the Rev and it was a pity he passed on. The new drummer is this dude from a band of Christians called Confide. Really awesome stuff, that Confide. Daren and Colin told me that his name was quite hard to pronounce. 

So, we queued up in Sunway Lagoon. We waited and waited and waited. And finally we were in! a good 45 minutes later, but this is standard la. Queued even longer for Muse! :)

We bought the RM98 tickets, which is the cheapest and effectively, we were at the far end from the stage. Zone B and Zone C (where we were at) was only separated by a metal barrier. Those that you see in your school canteen, ok, at least my school canteen, just to make sure the students  formed a uniformed line when buying food. That kinda metal barrier. 

Love Me Butch opened and the energy was intense. I thought their set was pretty good and I was headbanging to Generation SOS when it was played. Unfortunately, the crowd behind was not so responsive. I figured that they didnt know who Love Me Butch was. Nu metal or post metal they are deemed. But whatever their called, they knew how to rock! :)
Once they were done, then it was back to the waiting game and this time for the main event. 

Whilst waiting, I turned to look at where we were after 30 mins and suddenly Colin was in the front! Daren and I were quite puzzled cause 3 young punks were suddenly standing in front of us. But it was ok, they were cool.

And suddenly a bunch of kids were standing behind me. They probably are too young to even drive. But one of them, the skinny douchebag, was ultra irritating to say the least. He kept shouting the stupidest things like "M Shadows! I love you. I wanna suck your.................(let your imagination run wild here)..!" 

"I wanna have your babies!". HIs friends thought it was funny. And then when they played Metallica songs, he sang the Kirk Hammet's guitar solo bits, annoyingly! He started playing air drums and said to his friends, "hey man...uh uh.....look I'm a one man band...uh uh....heh heh  heh..you think it's easy being a one man band? Uh Uh heh Heh..!" DUDE IF IT AINT EASY THEN SHUT THE HECK UP!! I told him to shut it when he started encroaching my space and nudged me a bit doing his stupid air drum impersonation. 

Now, I've been to many concerts, probably more than this punk right here and I know human proximity is pretty high. That's fine. What's not fine is stupid douchebag punks who think they are funny but are not. 

Even his friends eventually got tired of his antics and just asked him if he still has any energy left for A7X. That didn't stop him though. In my head, I would have loved to elbow him when the band starts playing. You know jumping in the euphoria and then Ooopps..."sorry that's your head right?" :D. Of course common sense held me back. 

And then the band started playing. Nightmare was the song If I was not mistaken! And what an intro it was! The skinny douchebag screamed and into my ear no less! I actually felt the pain! Dumb kid! By then everyone was jumping like crazy and the mosh had begun! We were too busy jumping and headbanging when suddenly the barriers collapsed and we all suddenly rushed into Zone B, which is the RM198 area and we were so much closer to the band!

(My utmost sympathy goes to those who bought the RM198 ticks who now had to share the space with us, the cheapskates :)too bad..) 

The songs then kept coming. Critical Acclaim was next, followed by Welcome to the Family. I didn't know the song titles so I had to keep asking Daren. Earlier he fell behind because he helped a guy to get on his feet and from being trampled by the crowd after the barriers collapsed. Such heroism :) 

Other songs were played. Things got emotional when they played So Far Away. A song for their fallen comrade. It was emotional as the crowd lighted their lighters and started swaying their hands. The continued with assault after assault of metal goodness. And when they played the Beast and the Harlot, the crowd was in a frenzy. The video below was taken by my Iphone.

It took magical powers to even hold the phone when the moshing began. And then they played the twisted musical of a love song, A Little Piece of Heaven. The crowd was alive. And the chorus was resounding, 

It was also a good thing that M Shadows was really putting effort in conversing with the crowd. It was nice of him to try to chat the crowd up, like asking if we have been to the United States. And if So, they would take us to Bat Country and the riffs started for that one :).

They did 3 encore songs; Fiction, God hates Us and Unholy Confessions.I know the crowd desired further.

I personally left the concert wanting more. Though I wished I participated in the mosh pit but I know I'm not getting any younger. And besides, I had a trip to Korea to catch so, ending up with further torn ligaments (I have a torn ACL as we speak) was the last thing in my mind. The energies of youth. How I miss thee.

From a non-believer, I probably left the concert a disciple :) Why? Because I liked their music :- heavy chugging but melodic riffs. Metalcore plus harmonies and double guitar solos are always my thing. So, I missed L'arc En Ciel but this makes up for it big time.

And so, I leave thee with pictures from the A7X Malaysian concert.

Our night was truly Avenged......Sevenfold :)

5 Ways to Get Through A Jam

Traffic Jams.
If you live in Kuala Lumpur, then you've gotta endure that kinda crap everyday.
I know, cause I do endure that kinda crap everyday when I go to work. Even in my hometown of Ipoh, traffic is starting to get congested.
Very rare back in the good ol' days. But not in KL. KL is the jam capital of Malaysia.

I was even told off by a judge once that traffic jams is never an excuse for being late in court. I agreed wholeheartedly and all I could only do is muster my most sincerest apologies. I had nothing more to say about being late as it is the truth but the truth is just never enough on those occasions.

Why do traffic jams happen? Sometimes a stalled car. Sometimes an accident. Sometimes, people stopping by the side of the road to offer help to these victims. Sometimes people stopping by the side of the road to GET THE CAR PLATE NUMBERS of those victims (my best guess is that they feel lucky and their next destination would be the lottery joint). Sometimes events only God will ever know.

So, what do we do when we are caught in a jam? Do we get angry? Do we complain? Is complaining going to help? Nah. It won't but we complain anyway.

Here are 5 ways to make your jams less intolerable:-

#1
Lots and lots of music in your car

Be it your CD collection or stuffing butt-loads of music into your mp3 player or even listening to HItz FM gotcha calls in morning, it works. Well at least it works for me. If I'm feeling intelligent I would listen to BFM, 89.9, the only business radio station :).
If you had a long hard day and you just wanna let loose, play some heavy metal music. Or equally as loud and bad, play some classical music or opera! Or if you feel that your heart is heavy, play some jazz or some Engelbert Humperdinck. And if you're feeling suicidal, some BSB or N Sync might just do the trick :)

#2
Play your favourite air instrument

If you are a musician, then play your favourite air instrument. Be it the air guitar (this is / or should be by far the most common of air instruments), the air drums, the air cello, the air bass, the air harmonica, or heck, even the air harp if you will.
Well if you are not a musician, it doesn't matter. It's not rocket science and you don't need a musical degree or background to play air guitar, I kid you not. Just follow the music and it will flow naturally.
As for me, I choose the air drums, but I would alternate between bass and guitar too. Oh, the air harp too at times.
If the car next to you thinks you're crazy, so what? I bet he secretly wants to play the air harmonium if only he knew how!

#3
Get a smartphone

If you have smartphone, i.e. Iphone 4S, Galaxy S2, Galaxy Tab or the rest, then this is the best time to utilize the smartphone. See, now you can check your Facebook or your friends' Facebook statuses even in a jam. Or you can complain and tweet about how bad the jam is on Twitter, and if you're in luck, your friends are probably stuck in the same jam as you are! And if you have Words with Friends, isn't this the best time to reply and think of an awesome 'word' to put on the board? That way you don't have to waste your sleeping time or your work time to play Words! Now, please don't start playing Temple Run in a jam though. Just because its on a smartphone, it doesn't work the same as what I mentioned above. And if your car is stationed next to a police car, please for the love of Pete, throw that smartphone away!

#4
No Smartphone? Then do a car census
Find a specific car that interests you. Count how many same type cars are on the road. What better time to observe and make your own census without getting into an accident right? Yes it is harder to do census cause you need to concentrate on your driving when you are actually driving! By the end of the week, you will know which are the highest and fastest selling cars in the market after this exercise! Please do not do any Perodua or Proton car census as your efforts will then be futile. Too many of those on the road.

#5
See if the driver in the car next to you is a hottie
Whether we like it or not, we often meet people in the pathways of our lives. A jam is no different. So, look to the left or to the right to see if the driver next to you is a hottie, or an 'auntie'. At least you get to 'cuci mata' and this makes your jam more bearable. Who knows, that person may be observing you too. And if your eyes meet and sparks fly, who knows what may come eh? If not, please don't stare too long. It will probably creep him/her out and if he/she whips out her phone and starts dialing, you can bet your ringgit he/ she ain't replying his/her friend on Words with Friends!

Ok. So, there you go.
Some suggestions to make a more pleasant driving experience under terrible jams. But please practice safe driving alright. Especially do not practice #3 when there are cops in the vicinity. I won't be responsible for your driving summons. And #5 if you see Jealous girlfriend or boyfriend sitting next to hottie.

Of course if you have court attendance in the morning, please don't ever be late! Nothing above will make a pleasant experience, this I can promise you!

Or, if anything goes, you can always do a Dave Grohl :)



Ok. Good night now.

A review of 2011 - Part 1

AS 2011 closes in, in retrospect, so much has been done, and yet sometimes, it feels as if it's so little.

And yes, I have a December curse, I seem to be getting it a lot during the month of December. Well, to sum it up, I tore my Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and my medial collateral ligament. The good news is, the Doc informed me based on the X Ray reports that there was no fracture. But the MRI shows something grimmer and with stories of friends who came through hell and back from an ACL reconstruction, I was praying that it wasn't an ACL tear. But as earlier mentioned, it proved to be. Arrr..darn...

Well, it happened during the Firm futsal tournament. 1 win 1 lost and one more to play for. Being Captain for a team is nice. Tried to be as competitive but also reminded my team to have fun while playing. And the third game, up against my Bosses team and folks I know who were seasoned players, I relished the challenge. But as circumstances were anything to go by, I had an unusual tumble and my foot caught the turf while my body twisted along with my knee and then I realized, this is it. My first knee injury.
Ok, really its nothing to be proud of, but these are things that happened when you least expect them to. Well, you live by the sword, you die by the sword? ahaha

Anyway, December hasn't truly ended yet, so there may be a different twist to the ending of my 2011 story.

Ah...the story of my life.

Alright, once again in retrospect, 2011 was a year of revelations. The people I meet, the people I've become closer to. The people whom you think you know, but not always who they are. Revelations of who you trust and who you should be more cautious with. It's interesting really.

At work, what was once a tranquil department, although ripples appeared now and then, things are finally revealed. Perhaps it came at a cost, but it was something that needed to happened as the dirt under the carpet long swept became visible and apparent. It's cleansing time. It has to happened and it's a positive thing that it happened.

Yeah. I speak in summaries. Well, as a friend of mine said, "there's trouble in paradise". How apt.

So, I leave you here with pictures of my lovely knee brace.
I was branded Robocop by the Despatch boys in my firm and Forrest Gump by my cell group members. This became Robogump.
All hail Robogump!!

I may do a bucket list in 2012. That would include doing stand up comedy. Hey, Never try never know right?

OK. Till my next post before 2012 scratches my door!

A Night to Remember - KL Bar Charity Night 2011

The Annual KL Bar Charity Night came and went. 30 September 2011 to be exact.

After weeks of practice, The Skelchys finally got their 10 minute opportunity to act like superstars.
:) Was the performance good? Judging from the crowd, I hope so. But the energy from the crowd was there, and I suppose The Skelchys fed on that energy. If The Skelchys managed to entertain, then it was all that mattered. Whether they were good, bad, terrible, that wouldn't have mattered anymore :)

So who are the Skelchys? Ah Bob, Schnausser, Kitty Kat, Sunny Moon, Musico and Captain Cheese McSkelch thats who.

Actually the Skelchys are:-

Ahmad Fadzly :- Vocals, guitar
Sasha :- Vocals, looking pretty
Abdullah Khubayb:- Bass
Joshua Tong:- Lead guitar
Jacklyn See:- Keyboards
Yours Truly:- Drums


Anyway, The Skelchys managed to belt out 3 songs within the 10 mins time frame. No, actually they exceeded it, but then again at that point, whose counting?

3 Songs - U2's Beautiful Day, Katy Perry's Teenage Dream and one of my personal favourite headbangers, Blur's Song 2.

Below are the videos:-

Beautiful Day




Song 2


Hey, at least we tried :) hahaha. Oh yeah, I think Guy Fawkes was also spotted somewhere behind the drum set.
Then again, it was a good run :)

Anyway, the Charity Night was quite a good one. Many good performances especially the dance number from Lee Hishamuddin, when Raph and co did the Gee dance. It had me in stitches and we accompanied that dance at the encore!
Black Asphalt was good too. I liked their number cause it has a climatic end and well, quite thematic to say the least.
Aga was excellent in his acoustic set. Too bad it the crowd was kinda loud, so I suppose a jazz setting would have perhaps suited his performance. But beyond the crowd noise, his rendition of Tracy Chapman's Cars was good.
The dance number by OIT was also good, very well done and I suppose it captured the essence of Lady Gaga. Too bad I dont fancy her :)
Barcode was terrific too and See Xian brought the house down with the Consti Comm theme song.
Unfortunately we missed some performances like Iylia's and also Fourplay's. Would have wanted to be there much earlier, had we not been stuck in the Friday Night KL jam. Still horrible.

Well, there were many good looking people. Girls aplenty :) Hahaha. And ok, guys too I must say. IT was good catching up too with many people I know. After all the legal profession is a small one and one of solidarity. So, we know people who know people who know other people.

SO it was a memorable night, and I'm putting this down in writing so I could one day look at this post and reminiscent :) Until the next event, The Skelchys will be back :)

Also, thanks to the Members of the Skelchys, i.e. Fadzly, Sasha, Abdullah, Josh and Jacklyn. The people behind The Skelchys.

The pictures are as below. Well, its an older camera. So bear with it :)

A Birthday Wish to Mom

Wow, first and foremost, I must say I'm not impressed with the new Blogger interface. Maybe I'm just nostalgic or just to lazy to adapt to something new. Maybe I should adapt. Oh well, Doesn't really matter which interface I use. If change is imminent, then change it will be. But not today.

Today, my mom celebrates her 63rd birthday. This is one way of wishing her I suppose. An elaborate post. Well, we only have one mothers in our lifetimes and that's why we treasure them most. My mom, has been a constant reminder of what patience, sacrifice and grace is to me. To me and my sis. And above all, love, which probably embodies the above traits that I just mentioned.

If I were to be given a chance to choose any mother in the world, I wouldn't want that because I'm blessed enough to have a mom such as mine. She has been, and I'm being literal here, been by my side a lot, especially so much so when I was younger. You see I was quite a sickly kid and asthma attacks were very much part of my annual calendar. And this asthma attacks often lead me to the hospital for daily occupancy. That bad huh. But, you see, even in her busy working schedule, my mom would be there to look after me. Day and night. At least when she does not have to work, she will be there to look after me, and these are the memories that I'm most fond of. I mean not the fact that I'm in the hospital, but that my mom was always there for me. And every time I was discharged from the hospital, toys I did not get, but my mom would get me those picture cards I'm so fond of. (You see, I was quite and imaginative an artsy freak when i was a kid).

And as we were growing up, I remembered my mom trying to give us tuition. Yeah. She actually read the Alam dan Manusia textbooks and tried to teach us. I mean it worked. So i was proud to say that in my primary education, I wasn't as privileged as those who attended tuition, simply because I didn't need to. My mom taught us and it saved us a hell lot of money. HAHaahaha! And plus, I was quite a bright kid then. Back then at least.

Anyway, as we were growing up, Mom say the need for finances for education of both my sis and I. I suppose it was a difficult decision for both my parents but she decided to ply her trade in Singapore because of the superior currency exchange compared to our RM. That is perhaps one of the biggest sacrifices any parent can do for their kids. Of course, it also gave us a chance to go to Singapore to visit her and well, do some shopping on the sidelines, ahaha. But that's a different tale altogether. She was a nurse in Gleneagles Hospital, Singapore and that's also where we hear stories of how Singaporeans are not too fond of Malaysians. Well, not all I suppose but in the working world, perhaps its always harder. But even so, my Mom went against the odds and came out strong :)

Well, the bottomline is if I can sum up what my mom is, i would say that she is a superwoman. It's not easy juggling work and having to take care of her children but she did just that.

There are no perfect mothers in this world. But a mother's love is no less perfect :)

"Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children" ~William Makepeace Thackeray. This was quoted in the Crow. And what a message it brought. :)

I wanted to wait for Mother's Day to write this post. But alas, mother's day is a tad too far and it's my mom's special day. So, special blogpost for her in that regard :)

So, to my mom on her special day. Happy birthday mom! We love you a lot, back then, now and for the days to come :)

Happy Merdeka Raya

Perhaps for the first time in say, my 10 years in KL, I'm spending Hari Raya (or in this case Merdeka Raya in conjunction with 2 festive events, i.e. Hari Raya Aidilfitri or Eid ul-Fitr in Arabic and our own Independence Day aka Hari Merdeka) in KL.

With the hope of clear roads, as it has been on Monday and I must say it was a joy to go to work on clear roads, I was quite wrong when it came to shopping malls. Yes, the crowd in shopping malls, especially Mid Valley and Sunway Pyramid, both of which I went on the first day of Hari Raya, was simply, crowded. But in a good way. You see people simply hanging out or getting bargains out of the Hari Raya sale period and I suppose I got myself some work clothes too. Much needed I must say ever since I lost that much weight.

Well, anyway, it has been a almost 2 months since BERSIH 2.0.
And for once, my Merdeka celebrations didn't seem hollow. In fact, I had tea with a friend of mine, Aaron and today, we reminiscent once more 7th September 2011, when the physical show of unity was resounding. And through that, I have met many new faces as well, and people who share the same vision for Malaysia and for the future of it.
It's a beautiful vision, where race and religious barriers are broken. I have learnt as much as well. And it was a beautiful lesson. And today, hearing more stories on the accounts of BERSIH 2.0, on how the Malays have sacrificed their safety by letting us Chinese, walk through the back alleys of Tung Shin Hospital first before the Police came arresting. I didn't see it happening, but those stories encouraged me a great deal.

For all the talk about how the Malay race would 'lose' their privileges by joining hands in unison for a walk that impacted the nation, they had so much to lose and yet, they gave an example of how much change they desired a change for a better Malaysia, one that is free from corrupt practices and for good governance. For that, we, as the other races joined in the march as well knowing well that our vision was a shared one. But that was in September.

Well, we shared some views on movies and comedy skits as well. It's always nice too, to know that your friends are going to be proud parents as well and I would like to congratulate Aaron and Shin Yee for that. :)

And also after dinner, the discussions with a good friend of mine, Daren on what 1Malaysia is about. I disagree with his views and vice versa, but the discussions were good and opened up our views towards things.

Today, as I update Facebook statuses and observe others, people are more vocal about change. This is good. Whether they agree or not, at least discussions are more proactive. Thanks to platforms like Facebook and Twitter, information and views are easily shared. Yes, we all have different views on things, but it doesn't mean that we don't respect the views of others. :)
And looking at this, it encourages me even further, and hence this year round, my Merdeka celebrations seemed more meaningful.

Perhaps the adverts that have been shown on TV (minus of course the NTV 7 Ad, which perhaps we took it all too seriously) the most meaningful one, without so much as a show of 'unity' of races so often portrayed in our tv adverts during these times, would be the DIGI advert.
It doesn't speak of unity, but it speaks of us as individuals and also Malaysian. And it speaks on forgiveness, which is always thematic with Hari Raya Aidil Fitri.

And so it is here that I also seek forgiveness for all the things that I have done, the wrongs and the hurts I have caused people.
You may have been offended by my views and actions and I'm truly sorry.

So to you, whovever you may be, or if you know that it is you:-

I'm sorry for being a loser.
I'm sorry for being an arrogant SOB.
I'm sorry for being impatient
I'm sorry for not being a better boyfriend
I'm sorry for not being a better son
I'm sorry for not being a better employee at work
I'm sorry for being arrogant on my views
I'm sorry for not being a better friend.....

Forgiveness is indeed something given through grace. I don't suppose you can earn it. I know I can't. Be it on religious grounds or forgiveness from other people.
But to forgive is often more rewarding than to be forgiven.



As the ending quotes in the advert states "forgiveness does not change the past, but it brightens the future". That, like it or not, rings true in life.

To all my muslim friends, be it Malay, Chinese, Indian, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Maaf Zahir dan Batin. And Happy Merdeka 2011!

May the best years of our country be ahead of us and for days to come :)

3000

3006 hits. :)
Nice.
Thanks for reading all the nonsense that I have posted up thus far.

Remember now, you made it a point to read and waste your time doing so.

No one forced you into this.

But yes. :) Thanks all for reading.

Homeward Bound

Twas a good weekend.
Went back to Ipoh with sister and some friends.
My relatives from Singapore were also up north for the weekend, hence we decided to go back to Ipoh to meet up.
Of course the agenda would be to eat eat eat and eat somemore. Well, I spend more time with my family back in Ipoh. I think as I grew older, the importance of family is more apparent, cause I dont see them as often anymore. Which is always good.
So we had meals at Tai Kar Rock, one of the best places for 'liew' and the noodles there are nice.
And also at Wooley Food Centre. The food there is getting better and better. Not to say the best around, but for Ipoh standards, quite decent.
We had main meals at this place called Soon Fatt which is in the same row as Overseas. Good food, good price. Too bad this is not a food blog. Otherwise I would have blogged more about it. No photos though

Well, Colin, Joo Na and I also managed to catch Captain America: The First Avenger.
Captain America in costume

It was a very good movie I would say. Certainly better than the Green Lantern and even to some extent Thor. The movie had me rooting for Captain America (as Simon told us that we would, and we did) cause it was quite believable. Chris Evans gave a fantastic performance as man of pure heart and courage. And also the character development was good and did not fall short. One of the few movies that Marvel actually took time to build on character (the other movies being Spiderman and X men). So it was good. The pre-ending was also very emotional and Colin mentioned that there were a few ladies crying. Heck, I would have cried too if I was a lady :)
Even the fight scenes were still believable and not too extravagant. I especially like the fact that he was accompanied by a ragtag team of soldiers which was a nice touch.
The downside of it is that Hugo Weaving's Red Skull was a tad too one dimensional. As compared to Loki in Thor.
Well, the ending credits are definitely worth the wait and seeing the Avengers assemble will be something awesome. Loki is the main villain, so the awesomeness is amplified!

Ok. Plan for next Sat then: Rise of the Planet of the Apes! The trailer looks intense! and with James Franco, it shouldn't be anything less than good. :)


And yeah, I also bought a Ukulele.
Brand is called Mahalo - which means "Thank You".
So, I'm thanked for buying a China Made, Hawaiian sounding Ukulele?
I guess so. I mean the facts show it. "Mahalo" :)
Well, was it an impulsive buy? Nah not entirely. this was my second time asking for it at the Music Store in Ipoh. Well, maybe it was an impulsive buy cause it only costs...............................RM65 haha...cheaper than my second Kapok guitar even. Ukuleles in KL costs around RM200-Rm500 so this definitely sounds like a steal. Then again, the differences in quality would be apparent too :) Now time to download the chords and save myself from buying a Ukulele chord book. Hey Soul Sista! :) ahhaa

Maholo Ukulele - Made in China. RM65.00. Purchased at the Music Store. Noticed that they even throw in a Ukulele bag.

And United won the Charity Shield! Yes!!! wait...should I be happy? Cause the charity shield is always deemed as a curse to Champions! The only time United won the Charity Shield and continued to win the EPL Was back in ...wait they won it twice and won the EPL thereafter 2007-2008 and 2008 -2009. So the curse should not be feared..haha oh me of lil faith.
But it was good to see De Gea making some good saves and also Welback playng clever one twos and passes.
Looks like Nani is dying to shine and I do hope he will. At least try. But more in store...and normal EPL service resumes next week. Nice.:)
One up for the red half of Manchester. Too bad to the noisy neighbours. But they will be a force to reckoned in the days to come :)

Not too impressed with the Jersey though, doesnt look nice. But nevertheless I know I will buy it at some point in time. The bloody United fanboy that I am :) hahah

Charity Shield winners 2011 - Manchester United

9 July 2011 - The Voice of the People - And a Beautiful Rally

Press conference by Datuk Ambiga the morning before Bersih 2.0

After a week of sleepless nights, for the fear and excitement which was to come the day finally came and I'm glad to be a part of it once more and lived to tell the tale.
Perhaps if I didn't put my thoughts in writing tonight, I will not be able to get sleep :)
I have been sleeping on an average of 4 1/2 to 5 hours a day, something which I'm not supposed to be doing nor proud of. But since we live in exciting times, I just can't help but to wake up and not be able to sleep again.

Today, 9 July 2011, once again history was made. Once again, we have shown the government that we are capable of calling their bluff on their fear threats.
KL city, as of Friday evening was at a locked down. We made mental and spiritual preparations (prayer service and also yum char / discussion sessions on tactics and routes) as we hear news of the government warning us not to participate in these 'haram' rallies. Undoubtedly we were fearful, but at that point in time, perhaps we have crossed the line of being fearful. Rather we felt that we could no longer tolerate the hypocritical stance made by the government. We have always been fed blatant lies and even up to the point of our beloved PM seemingly granting a truce for Bersih 2.0 to be held in a stadium after meetings with the Agong, only to find out that he has retracted his stance. So much for being our esteemed leader when we can't even trust his word anymore. Was it there to begin with?
We planned carefully of what to bring and how our bags could fit anything yellow. We heard that there will be roadblocks (and yes, true enough streets with 5 lanes were forced to become 1) and that there will be bag checks in the LRT. Nevertheless we decided to leave earlier and God-willing to have breakfast in the heart of KL (Petaling Street Area). We planned to move from KL Sentral as we heard that Pasar Seni was already locked down by the Police.

I couldn't sleep much. The anticipation and excitement was there. And for once, I felt the fear of arrest, which in these times proved so much more real than the other rallies that I went to including the First Bersih. We know that the PM will do everything to hinder Bersih 2.0.
Come morning, I met up with Kah Weng and Wil Liam. We were on the way when we got the call from Colin stating that Pasar Seni is opened and that we could move in there immediately. We duely did that. And then we caught up with Yuk Meng in Bangsar LRT station. Surprised to see him there cause we thought he would leave with Sze Hoo. But nevertheless, we were on this together and it was good we caught up with him.

We were able to catch up with the group at Lai Foong Coffee Shop. It's been a while since I've eaten the beef noodles there. They say that its real good. After all these years, I still think it's mediocore. Hahah. Sorry. Not doing a food posting here. But, as said, we met with the larger group consisting of Colin, Simon, Desmond, Huey, Jude, KayX, Ashley, Eddy, SzeHoo and Mee Chuen. And then Alvin came not long after. Colin had another group following him, the peeps from FES. We were introduced to each other. In the coffee shop we saw the usual suspects for the rallies, familiar faces but people who would go out to fight for justice and have a hunger for a better Malaysia.



I called my colleagues, who were starting their journey from Sentral and told them to try to meet us up here safely. They said they would. The streets around Petaling Street were however eerily quiet.



Close to 12.30 pm, we watched a large group coming from Dayabumi, but blocked by the police barricade. However, we also saw more and more people rallying and gathering at Petaling Street and from our sources, we heard that the march to Stadium Merdeka had already begun. Awesome.

We went to Petaling Street and waited. The crowd grew. And then suddenly we heard cheers aloud. The group which had a stand off with the police at the Bar Council had now journeyed it's way to meet up with the Petaling Street group. And then with perhaps close to 5000 people by now, we marched to the Stadium shouting chants of "Hidup Bersih!" and "Hidup Rakyat" which translates to "Life to the People". And this is the point where we changed to our Yellow apparel or wear anything significantly Yellow in support of the wave. It was massive! Seeing people gather for a cause is such a beautiful thing.


Upon finding that the roads to the Stadium were barricaded, we walked back towards Kota Raya with the crowd. News, was that the crowd was meeting at Menara Maybank. We walked nevertheless. I caught up with my colleague at some point and I was quite surprised to see my boss, Mr Siva in the walk. At the moment, I felt deeply encouraged knowing that the people in my firm supported this cause with all their hearts and was more than willing to come to the city on 9 July 2011 in support of people power. Oh yeah, we picked up Eugene at this juncture as well. We were glad to have found him here!

Anyway, when we reached Menara Maybank, the group had easily swelled to about 30,000 people, so some say. Of course the mainstream media will spin its lies stating only 3000 instead.
Not everyone wore yellow but the fact of being there already speaks magnanimous volumes for fighting for their cause!


Here are a few pics of us, enjoying the Rally and were in party mood. :) The guilty parties.






The atmosphere was electrifying to say the least. The crowd this time round was definitely bigger than Bersih 1.














That's Colin by the way. Our group's organizer and leader. Some say he is Taliban. I refuse to believe those dodgy comments. :) nyahahaha









And here you can see happy smiling faces.
Was there any malice or violent intent? Surely not :)
But no, the police would never stand down. And soon they deployed teargas and watercannons onto the peaceful protestors. We were made to understand that the chemicals laced in the water cannons were by far worst than ever and more potent. But in the spirit of true Malaysians, those who were in trouble, from the effects of the teargas were quickly offered aid by those around them. When one falls, there will be at least 10 to pick him/her up. :) Incredible spirit by the people.


And so, the large entourage now at Menara Maybank had no choice but to rally at Puduraya station. And here once again, the people have proved that they were discipline enough and marched for peace and solidarity.


And one point the rallyers were sitting on the road, peacefully and tried to negotiate with the men in blue. However, teargas was once again fired and there is evidence that the people were even manhandled and beaten by the police and even so, they refused to retaliate. Truly their spirit, determination and discipline is greatly admired.
Below is a video of proof that they were manhandled, beaten and arrested from Malaysiakini and Al-Jazeerah





And this is where we felt the full effects of the teargas. It had been a cat and mouse game. Each time they fired, the people backed, but return with more conviction than ever. And once again the police were relentless in firing the teargas canisters. We were tearing and some us felt like we needed to vomit to lessen the effects of it. It was bad but we survived it. Later did we only found out that the gas was quite lethal and there was a fatal casualty in connection with the suffocation effects that the teargas brings.

Eventually we managed to get to safer and higher ground and we rallied to a friend's office to rest and recharge. By this time, some of us have split up. Simon, Jude and Huey would eventually follow the large crowd to KLCC for another showdown. And this is the place where a supporter died from the suffocation effects of the tear gas. His name was Baharuddin Ahmad, and his death will not be in vain. :)

After resting at our friend's office near Bursa Malaysia, we eventually decided that we have done our part and now plan to go back to where we came from. However at that point in time, LRT's were still closed and we hear of arrests now made in KLCC, perhaps the final showdown.
Previously there was another showdown at Merdeka Stadium where we were told that the police, initially agreed to give safe passage to the protestors but eventually launched an attack on the protestors after giving false leeway. And this group was forced to move to Pasar Seni, where they were once again surrounded by tear gas.
In the end, we received news that Datuk A Samad Said, our national laureate, had successfully handed the memorandum at the Istana Negara. During this time, we perhaps knew that the group in Pudu was the decoy group perhaps leading much of the police away from the other group. Bravo! Mission accomplished thought casualties were in place.

To sum it all up, it was an awesome Saturday, this 9 July 2011 was.
I'm truly encouraged by the turn out though it could have been more people if not for the police and the FRU. But I do believe the numbers have surpassed the first Bersih and this time, although i see the familiar faces, new friends and comrades join in the fight against injustice and this is truly encouraging.

Few points to be taken from the rally:-

1. The People rallied not just for cleaner elections, but to make a stand against the fear put unto them.

2. The People are tired of the government's double standards of treatment

3. The People are more aware than ever of half baked truths spun by the mainstream media

4. The Police do not act fair (The police aimed their tear-gas guns directly at the civilians, they have no sense of fair rules of engagement even when the protestors sat down to show that they are there in peace and the attacks on the protestors in Tung Shin Hospital are just distasteful and disrespectful - the videos shown below are proof of that)

5. The government shows it's fear towards the people and it's beautiful idea of democracy (suggesting perhaps that they have much to hide)

6. Once again, the protestors showed great discipline and brotherly love towards one another and even against the FRU's and the police without retaliating amidst the violent treatment towards them. An eye for an eye? Unlikely. But as a friend of mine , Wil Liam was saying, the treatment meted out by the police is as such - "you don't kill a mosquito with a gun" - More pics and videos on this below.

7. Two weeks of Bersih propaganda has united Malaysians more than 2 years of 1Malaysia ever did and this was quoted by Sze Hoo, another fellow marcher.

8. We are and can always be a united nation when we recognize that we can no longer be merely tolerant with each other but truely embrace the difference and the diversity that each of us has to offer. And in this diversity, Unity is achieved when we fight for a common and higher purpose.

And I also want to take this time to send my sincere condelences to the family of Mr Baharuddin Ahmad, who had died due to breathing difficulties from the effects of the tear gas. It truly saddens me and his death was an unnecessary one if we had a truly competent government. Though I do not know him, I do hope that his passing would not be in vain and people, please do not let his efforts be in vain as well. Please be reminded and honour him, when you cast your vote in the coming elections. Cast it well.







And further pictures that speak more than words itself. Beautiful pictures from Al-Jazeerah

This is a picture of someone known as "auntie Anne" - her courage and resilience is truly inspiring.


THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN!! POWER TO THE PEOPLE!!!