the mayonnaise jar and coffee...

an interesting read I received via email...

THE MAYONNAISE JAR AND COFFEE

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours
in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the
coffee.

A professor stood before his Philosophy class and had some items in
front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large empty
mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the
jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas
between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it
was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He asked once more if the jar was full.
The students responded with a unanimous "Yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and
poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty
space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, I want you to
recognize that this jar represents your life.

"The golf balls are the important things - i.e.
your God, family, your children, your health, your friends, and your
favorite passions - things that if everything else was lost and only
they remained, your life would still be full.

"The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house,
and your car".

"The sand is everything else - the small stuff."

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no
room for the pebbles or the golf balls."
"The same goes for life."

"If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will
never have room for the things that are important to you."

"Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness."
"Play with your children."
"Take time to get medical checkups."
"Take your partner out to dinner."
"Go for a walk or do some form of exercise."
"If posible, play another round of golf."
"Make enough time to clean the house and fix the disposal."
"Set your priorities right - the things that really matter."

"The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee
represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked."

"It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

damn elevators...

Arrghhh today is the first time I got trapped in an elevator! With about 10 other colleagues from the training. Took the damn hotel 20 minutes as well to get it fixed and running. 5 star hotel my ass! When we paged the dude about the elevator, all he said was 'Ok' and then silence. We paged again about 5 minutes later and then only does he reply with an update. Jeeeez. At least some acknowledgement la. Lucky the lights and ventilation of the lift didn't shut down. If not we would have had a pretty stressed out crowd. Some of them were already complaining about lack of oxygen and better not talk too much. LOL. Guess no harm in preparing for the worse. Anyways time for sleep again. Another early morning tommorrow and somehow my body can't really cope with the time difference. Sigh.

paid vacation...

La la la. Tommorrow I'm off on a paid vacation for 3 whole days. Yup you guess it, its seminar and conference time again. Starting tommorrow I have 1 day of conference to attend with about 8 speakers. All talking about various aspects of a contact center. This followed by 2 days of training. At the end of the training (if I pass the exam as well), I'll be a certified Contact Center Manager. Its not that big a certification but its better than nothing. Help spruce up my resume especially considering the certification is endorsed by Contact Center Association of Malaysia. So I can't really complain. This time around the seminar should be worth while. Hopefully I won't be gaining anymore weight especially after loosing almost 3 kilos recently. Wish me luck on that. Gotta head home early now so I can wake up on time. Gd'nite folks!

damn taxes...

What the fuck is wrong with our country?! Can't we get anything right. 9th Malaysian Plan my ass. We got a long way to go before thats a reality. We can't even give and follow simple directions.

Its that time again when we all gotta do our taxes. Dateline is coming soon and so I tried to beat the rush and queues by doing mine early. After all the paperwork it turns out I owe Malaysia a couple hundred ringgit. So I did as the form says and got a check ready and placed into an envelope with the address of the collection department. As the Kelana Jaya office was pretty nearby, I decided to head down there and dump it in the collection box. Much safer and at least I have the confidence that its already with them, instead of being stuck in some mailbag or thrown in a drain somewhere. After dropping it off it was a relief off my back. Don't have to worry about this till next year.

Sadly that wasn't the case. Looks like my ass luck kicked in. Next morning I get a call from our tax department. Supposedly they changed the method of payment. No checks via the tax department. Only via the 2 designated banks. So please come and take back your check. Fine, drove down there and picked it up and had a word with the attending officer. We questioned about why no mention of this ANYWHERE as well as the form stating that its possible to drop off at or mail to the tax department. Her excuse was that they JUST changed the procedure. Then we asked what happens to all the people that mailed their checks in as the form states. You know what was her answer?! She actually said 'Too bad, it'll most probably get lost in the mail!'. Now what the fuck type of answer is that? Didn't we just hear that the government has improved their services. Its being advertised on the telly. Improved in what sense? They must have a different dictionary than mine because I don't fucking see any improvement. At times its worse than before! After that it just wasn't worth arguing anymore. Just took my check and headed to the nearest designated bank.

Now that itself was another challenge. The damn bank hid the forms needed for tax payment. Every other form was out there on the counter. From EPF payment to cash withdrawal/deposit. All except for tax payment. You gotta ask the clerk for that. Its hidden behind the counter. Looks like the bank is reeeeally 'eager' to accept tax payment right. Freaking A! Why must the process be so tedious?! I mean we are actually trying to GIVE money to the government. This isn't a refund request. Jeeez. No wonder people don't freaking bother with the taxes. Its too freaking annoying. Plus the damn tax department themselves aren't aware of the procedure. Every idiot there will tell you a different story. Get your damn procedure right!

Arrgghhh. I'm too pissed to ramble on. Screw it!

my baby got pimped...

Ssup peeps?! As mentioned in a previous post, I got my baby pimped with an audio system recently. The whole setup really blew a hole in my wallet but considering how important music is when I drive, its money well spent. I'm really satisfied with my choices and the overall installation. Due to it still being new I'm still afraid to blast it too much but once I confirm a few things with the installer, I'll let her rip. Plus its still new so gotta let it run it first. Below are some pics of the work. With this I must say that my baby is starting to build her character. Think its time to come up with a name. Any suggestions?

alpine cd player...

front 6.5" components...

4 channel amp and 10" woofer...

overall setup from inside...

restoran talipon...

Damn! I should have realised when they couldn't spell 'telephone' in Bahasa Malaysia properly. That could've been an indicator of how 'great' the place was. I remember reading somewhere that this place was alright plus a colleague of mine said the same thing. Heck no! This was the worse dining experience I've had in ages and I've eaten in some pretty dodgy places mind you. For those that aren't really aware, Restoran Talipon is an 'All U Can Eat' joint focussing on Steamboat and BBQ. Now that is an offer that most can't resist but sadly I would advise ALL OF YOU to please STAY AWAY from this shit hole. It NOT WORTH the RM2o!

Firstly the lay out is as cheap as it can get. Throw some tables about, a gas tank for your stove and lay the food out. Everything is out in the open. No door or windows or partition. The rest is up to you. You take what you want and you cook it. Now this isn't all that bad but the variety sucked. The damn steamboat pot never ever reached boiling point. This is with us being there for almost 2 fucking hours. Even when it was empty it never boiled. Now tell me what kind of steamboat is that. There wasn't any STEAM in the first place! Then came the BBQ part. Which I guess wasn't all that bad except the space to do it on was so small and lacked heat it took 10 minutes to cook a slice of meat. Plus after BBQing for about half an hour, the tray gets all burnt. Now it takes even longer to cook anything. Arrrgggh. The freaking frustration. Luckily we had only 3 of us, imagine if there was more. You might have to camp your ass out there the whole night just to have a decent meal.

Sigh. After the meal I felt cheated. Raped even. Didn't expect such a joint to survive in Klang Valley. Plus people seem to frequent it. Maybe getting ripped off is an addiction for some. Or maybe they've learnt to beat the system. I dunno. One thing for sure is I ain't going back there. For that amount of money I could have had much better meal in sooo many other places. Arrghhh I hate getting ripped off!! Fuck you Talipon!!

banana leaf...

Finally after weeks and weeks of cravings, I got my dose of banana leaf rice. *Burp* Sorry the tank is full. Had to release some pressure. Although unlike most I had mine during dinner. Can't really imagine eating so much during lunch. Had my rice at Kanna Curry House in Section 17. I like it there than most places because they have a fresher variety of veggies as well as deep fried stuff like chilli and bittergourd (which is a definate must). Sadly its also slightly more expensive. Pretty weird actually that banana leaf rice can cost so much (from RM4 to RM6 depending where you eat). I mean its just rice and vegetables plus some curry. How many people can actually eat RM4 to RM6 worth of rice?! Some places even control the intake, you can't have more without finishing your first batch. Sigh. Food seem to get pricier and pricier as time goes by. Some shops increase the price blatantly whenever something happens to the economy. We usually boycott these places but the usuals somehow still frequent them. Supporting their crooked ways. Sigh. We need to have a more supportive consumer society. Teach these daylight robbers a lesson. Put them out of business. After all we are the ones paying their damn salaries! Oh well, I'm just rambling.

Hmmm feel like a nap now. Tummy is full. Feel rather sleepy. Yaaaaawn.

audio upgrade...

Finally after months of deliberation, I have finally sent my baby to KKLau (an audio accessory shop in Kelana Jaya) for an ICE (in car entertainment) upgrade. I just couldn't take the stock crap anymore. Shes gonna get herself a pair of components in front, a new cd player, a 4 channel amplifier plus my subwoofer from Betty. Its gonna be a 100% Alpine setup. I'm also doing some sound proofing for the front doors. Would love to soundproof the whole car but its rather expensive. Maybe over time. No hurry.

I'm hoping when I collect my baby tommorrow all will be done without any hiccups. Don't want to be heading back to them numerous times. Can't wait to get her I tell ya. Feel like a kid witha new toy. Will post some pics if possible once done. Wish me luck folks! =)

remy's engagement...

Last weekend was one of the best times I've had in awhile. Its been ages since a group of us pilled up in a car and headed somewhere for a road trip. So when Remy's engagement came up, we all hopped on for the trip. Two cars went down on Friday, Dev's electric kelisa and my chubby baby with a total of 7 of us. The drive down was pretty quiet as there wasn't much traffic on the road. We maintained a speed of about 120kph and reached within 4 hours or so. Remy made arrangement for our housing and what a great choice it was. Its this place called The Zon which is on the channel between Johor and Singapore and somehow just that lil spot is considered duty free. Can imagine you imagine?? All the chocolates and liquor are duty free in that hotel! Sadly its not like Tioman or Langkawi where you can take out 1 liter if you stay overnight, unless of course you try to smuggle em' out.

Once we reached about 5pm we got ourselves cleaned up and headed downstairs to the lounge area. It was still Happy Hours (HH) till 8pm and we didn't have to go anywhere till about 9pm for Remy's birthday party. We got a shock when we checked out the pricing. One pint of draught Guiness Stout is only RM10 and you get another free during HH. A jug of draught Tiger is only RM33 with another free as well. OMFG! Can you imagine?! Its like we died and gone to heaven. I had about 2 and half pints before it was time to bounce. At the party was another shocker, there were like 3 bottles of Chivas waiting to be consumed. I really felt like I was in Wonderland. The drinks just kept coming and coming. On top of that we had some nice tidbits to take it all down with. Some deep fried pork and chicken nuggets plus deep fried taufoo. What a great combination. The night ended around 3am, which we sneaked out as we gotta be up by 9ish for Remy's engagement ceremony.

The next morning we got up around 10ish and rushed to the ceremony in a nearby Gurdwara. It was the first time for me stepping into one plus also the first time we got to see Remy actually wearing a turban. Not a bad sight I must add. It was an interesting experience. After the ceremony ended, we left for the hotel. Sadly I should have stayed because I could have tasted some good chappati and dhal. Sigh. Maybe next time. At the hotel, some of us took the oppurtunity to catch some winks before the night ceremony while the other half went down to the lobby to continue on their liquid diet. I couldn't join em because whatever I took kept coming out. Must have been all that liquid gold from the night before. Wasted because it was too cheap to miss. Sigh.

At about 5ish we all got washed and dressed up and headed to the night ceremony. It was held at this civil hall or something near Danka Bay. It was a nice simple gathering. I tell you, one thing about Sikhs, when they have a party, its all about the booze. For that night alone there were about 8 barrels of Tiger plus god only knows how many bottles of whiskey. From Chivas to Dimples. Dev told me that they had stacks of it in Remy's 'future' father in law's car. OMG. And these people can drink. There were only about 150 ppl, out of which maybe 50 odd men. From that I would say about 70% were drinking. One after another. Cheering and gulping. It was like a booze orgy. We just couldn't take the onslaught. Felt like amateurs man. I mean Dev, Jam, Vick and myself are pretty good drinkers, but somehow, compared to these folks. Sheesh. We were like high skool kids sneaking out a can of beer for kicks. Sadly we had to sneak out of this one as well. Real early too. By about 9ish we were outta there. We just couldn't take the pressure. We reached out hotel about 20 minutes later and retired to our rooms. Think Dev and Vick knocked out cold while our room (which had 4 bachelors) were playing around in the room. Think the room finally got quiet about midnight.

On Sunday we woke up about 9ish for breakfast. Then got cleaned and packed and checked out. We got ourselves some chocolates and ciggies for the smokers (stashed them in the seat tray to avoid the customs) and rolled out. We manage to get out without any problems. Think Dev even managed to smuggle out a bottle of whiskey. I didn't want to take the risk. It would've cost more if we got caught plus I think I had enuff of liquor after the last 2 nights. Before we headed back to Pee Jay we stopped over at Danka Bay. A so so place to hangout with multiple food cafes by the bay. Food wasn't much to shout about but it did its job. We filled our tummies and got on our way. Now the drive back was pretty interesting. We managed to reach PJ from Johor in about 3 hours. And this is with stopping at a rest stop and having some Baskin Robbins ice cream (which was real yummy!). There were tonnes of cars flying down and we just tailed em. Had fun bullying some arseholes who just didn't know how to drive. Think they own a SUV or Beemer they can do whatever they want. We showed em, or at least irritated the hell outta em. LOL.

All and all it was a great road trip. Remy and his friends were great hosts and the supply of booze was more than we could bargain for. Good food (and drinks!), good friends and a good time. Can't wait till the next time. Hmmm Remy, whens the wedding? ;)

remy himself with his mighty turban!

don't we look smashing...

future groom and bride...

not another jug?!

lunch at the bay...

group shot before bouncin'...

good to be home...

Ahh just got back from Johor after spending about 2 nights there. Will blog about it more once rested. Hopefully with pictures as well. It was a great trip and the hotel we stayed in was amazing. Miss the duty free drinks and chocos. Wouldn't mind a cold pint of stout now. =)

bummer...

Sigh. What a fucked up week it has been. The weekend started off ok with a good game of futsal but after that it was downhill all the way. Am still trying to recuperate from it. Bought some rojak in SS2 (which I eat quite often) and it fucked my body up real bad. Within 2 hours I was vomitting, purging and the worse part, suffering a splitting migraine. Don't ask me how you can get a headache with food poisoning but the doc says you can and I was going through that shit. Its the worse food poisoning bout I have ever experienced. The vomitting stop after I got an injection from the doc since oral meds just didn't work. I vomitted anything I took in, from water to bread to biscuits. Purging came on and off which didn't bother me much but the headache. Hotdamn! Bitch is still tormenting me. The amount of panadols and pain killers I've had so far, I think just sipping my blood can cure minor headaches. Lucky it seems to be very slight now which is a huge blessing. Hope by tommorrow it'll be all gone since I'll be heading for one of my mate's engagement in Johor. Plus I'm also one of the designated cars so I can't really sleep through the ride. Wish me luck folks.

Surprisingly, the only good thing out of all this mess? I lost 2 kilos. Yup. I guess its common since I usually lose weight after a food poisoning bout. Hmmm maybe I can start my own weight loss program. Hmmm, what should I call it?