Sunday, May 02, 2010

Learning from Ip Man 2 x 2

Most people long waited this movie for its fighting scenes, I know I waited for it since I watched Ip Man , for the moral values that it carries. And it didn't fail to bring out the best of martial arts' teaching : "贵在中和,不争之争"and "人的地位有高低之分,但人格不应该有贵贱之别" .

In the Samo Hong mentioned something very important :做人要有原则

I can't believe I fall asleep during the 2nd time I watched Ip Man 2...

So, I am 29 now.

It's been a very very very very very busy month in April, now only I free to even look at my blog again, haha, who cares, no one will read anyway.
Thanks to my company's NSC, my birthday week is spent in Pullman Putrajaya and I turned down many proposals to celebrate my birthday. Probably this is a good thing also, old dy, birthday celebration become something less important, how I live my life for the past 1 year matters more. :D

Receiving presents is always nice but I really do not want to see people spending money buying things that I may not need, so i decided to let ppl know what I prefer to do for my birthday celebration if any. Really appreciate my friends who spare their time to fit my schedule and arrange the program and movies that I like to watch for me ( anytime seems to be a good time to treat me a movie, LOL!). I know in the process of trying to accomodate my busy schedule for April 2010, the Charcoal n I had a misunderstand and argue a little, but I really appreciate her for putting things together for me. :D
The biggest disappointment of the week is that my lion is not delivered as scheduled, too bad for the salesman that I have to give him and his manager my piece of mind, 1 week from now if the lion is not delivered , he can kiss the business good bye.
It's been a busy and stressful April for NSC, and here comes the officially busy month of May for work. YK, u can do it !

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

The origins of KLCC Twin Towers

Posted by Dreadnought
Malaysia-Today; Sunday, 26 October 2008 19:59

Following the search for the origins of the Malaysian constitutional 'malays', my journey brings me to Vietnam . There, I meet up with the Cham people. After all, every Kelantanese I've met claim to be descendants of the Mighty Champa Kingdom .

Just who are the Cham? I met up with Dr. Hang, an Anthropologist at Saigon University , Ho Chi Minh City . According to him, the Champa Kingdom is a 2nd Century Kingdom in Central Vietnam . From 1487, they were continously driven by the Kinh (read as Mongoloid Vietnamese) from Hanoi till Phan Thiet today. Proof of this lies in the fact that there were hundreds of Cham Towers from Hanoi till Phan Thiet (near Mui Ne Beach).




If you'd observe very carefully, you might notice how similar the Cham are to the Kelantanese. The Austronesian Cham of Vietnam look extremely similar, and wear identical headgear to almost everyone in Kelantan. Both male as well as female. Not surprising. The Champa Kingdom had long established trading ties with both the present-day Malaya , Pattani, Aceh as well as Java since the 4th Century. Multiple wars also broke out between the Kingdom of Champa with Java. Migration was simply inevitable.

The Chams were Hindus. They still are today. In fact, all the towers of the Champa Kingdom are of Hindu Origin. One may visit any Museum, from Saigon to Danang till Hanoi . They all have on display, hundreds, if not thousands of Artefacts of this mighty Ancient Hindu Kingdom . It is however, so sad to see the Chams today, getting the short-end of the stick. Since they were driven by the Kinhs ( Hanoi ) down south, they live in the most hostile parts of the country. Barely getting rain, the land is almost Savannah-like in nature. Large cacti live in abundance on non-cultivated land.

Visiting the Cham produced mixed feelings. On the one hand, one comes face-to-face with the remnants of a mighty empire. On the other hand, one wonders why the Vietnamese government does little to improve the living conditions of these 'bumiputras'. I proposed new theories; that the Cham were in fact the actual people of the Dong Song, Hoabinhian and Sa Hyunh Culture, much to the surprise, but delight of these Saigon Anthropologists. Previously, they only assumed that those cultures belonged to 'someone else', and that Cham History only started in the 2nd Century. Proof being the Temples and Towers. I also highlighted that the Champa Kingdom would have been the second Kingdom of the Hindunization of South East Asia . The first, being Malaya, in the site near Penang called Lembah Bujang, of the 2nd Century.



Upon further scrutiny, there seems to be a lot more than just distant historical similarities between the Cham people, and the Kelantanese. My translator informed me that there were twin towers located in Qui Nhon. 'Much like that in Malaysia '. I was dumbfounded !! I immediately made the 300km journey. In total, I travelled over 2,000 km by road, boat, and every other imaginable transport available, visiting over 30 major Cham Tower sites along the entire coast of Vietnam .

Furiously making notes, I also found that the similarities did not stop at the fact that there were just twin towers. Cross-examining schematic diagrams of the Cham Towers and KLCC was astounding! For example, the top and side view schematics, when overlayed, was an identical match.



The similarities did not end there, even a side profile view of the Cham towers and KLCC was a match. I could barely contain my excitement when I made these cross-comparisons. Even the Saigon Anthropologist Professors were dumbstruck. No one had ever imagined that there was any correlation between an apparently 'Muslim-built Design' with that of an Ancient Hindu one. Add to that, it was located in isolated Vietnam . For those who have visited these sites before, pull out your private photo boxes, and confirm for yourself that the pictures I have displayed here have not been doctored in any way.






Considering that Mahathir was of Indian Origin, it does not completely surprise one that he took inspiration from his ancestry in Kerala. However, one might think that it is strange that he took inspiration from 2 apparently incompatible religions to build his monumental icon. It is even stranger that despite using a Hindu-derived icon to symbolize Malaysia , the Hindraf are swept aside and marginalized. Of course, it is even stranger that Najib takes the trouble to fly in from India , Hindu Priests into his home and office to perform covert rites, as per ascertained by the Driver's Sworn Affidavits.

Can seemingly incompatible religions be jointly practised? No? Read on. This might change your mind. Think for a moment of Sai Baba's concept of 'All religions lead to God' Concept. The clue lies in Vietnam . There is a Religion called CaoDai-ism. It is very widely practised. CaoDai is a merger of Confusianism, Taosim, Buddhism, Catholism, and Islam. This is a unifying and endemic religion. So is the Cham-Bani religion, which is a merger of Hinduism & Islam. Then, there are The Balinese, practising a merger religion of Animism & Hinduism. Of course, most of Java practices Kejawen which is a combination religion of Animism & Islam. So in reality, Najib's merger of Hinduism & Islam would be merely a copycat version of the Cham-Bani-type of religion of Vietnam . To add to it, he is Bugis, which makes him part Mongolian, part Arab. (No reference intended of his involvement with Altantuya). Hence his pale Mongoloid-type appearance! .

Surprisingly, UMNO today has turned to worshipping a Chinese God. And that God, is called the God of Money. So, the combination religion which unites worshiping Corruption and Allah, is called BN (Blatant Narcisism). Since inter-faith combination- worship is now a known Asian trait, is it not strange that UMNO was so quick to dispense with The Sky Kingdom in Terengganu? Perhaps Sky Kingdom Worshippers were not into worshipping Corruption as UMNO fervently does. I wonder what went on in UMNO's minds. I also wonder what Hadhari actually is. (or not...)

Take heart, my Hindraf friends. You now have an World Famous Icon, built by an Indian, who took direct inspiration from Hinduism. Not just one building, but a pair of twins, financed with Malaysian Petroleum money. Be proud. This is the best Hindu Representation of Malaysia , the world has ever seen; something which even 'Semi Value' did not anticipate. Hence, his Political Demise. (or should I have said Allaryahum Semi Value??) I can imagine him going 'Aiyo yoyoyo..' while smacking his forehead.

I'll part, leaving you with a composite picture. Two World-Famous icons 'photoshoped' together to illustrate my point. Please do not let the Khmers see this, or they would sue the pants off Malaysia like the Indonesian Parliament almost did with Rasa Sayang. Maybe the Khmer Rouge did discuss this blatant copyright infringement, maybe they did not. But I doubt Pol Pot lost any sleep over this. I'll keep Malaysia posted at the end of my research in Cambodia .

Monday, March 29, 2010

Test Driving Ford Focus TDCi 1.6












Another free and easy weekend which I am supposed to be resting at home waiting for the Energizer Night Race in the evening, a friend called up and invite me for a movie. As I was on my way to M.Valley I called up Ah Keem for fun but she is really free, the thought of test driving the Ford Focus TDCi crossed my mind and I INVITED her to fetch me from M.Valley to jalan 205 Ford Showroom ( movie at 1.30pm, I was already in MV at 11.30am). Nice Ah Keem came with 5-series ( I have to mention this....:P) to pick me up.

Seriously, this car is reallt POWERFUL with 320Nm torque and 135bhp, the car pick up faster than the 308Turbo and 6 speed really smooth , I can feel that the power keep kicking in after 2K rpm and it's like there is no limit to the torque, perhaps it was the road condition at Jalan Templer area that doesn't allow this car to unleash its full potential. Being a diesel powered engine and compatible with bio-diesel, the FC of around RM0.06/km or 900+KM/full tank is really tempting, imagine saving RM200-250 extra from petrol expenses, having the torque and horsepower of a 2.0L car without compromising the need to speed, this is the car to go! :D

Anyhow, at the price of RM128,888, the specs offered in this model is really disappointing, apart from electric seats and leather seats that are acceptable, the rest of the items and build is abit low class, I would expect something close to what Honda has to offer at Civic range, but no, I can't find them in this Focus TDCi, which is quite a turn off .....

Thanks to Ah Keem for fetching me around on busy Saturday traffic...:D

I think I made a good choice to have booked the Lion, price to pay ? HIGHER FC... :(

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Test Driving 407, 308Turbo, 308Vti and Mazda 3


I am supposed to write my test drive experience right after CNY, but I was too busy until I forgot ( I know how some of my friends will back fire me for using this excuse...but they are not reading this blog, :P).

As my 1st experience viewing 407 and 308Turbo gave me some impressions on their specs and prices, I decided to visit NAZA again on one of the weekend in March to make a test drive, if possible I would like to test drive the Forte since its specs offered are also very attractive.

This is the 1st time I drive a car that is about 4.7meter length, mind u this is almost the length of Honda Odyssey. The pick up power is decent, probably becoz I am used to pick up power by a manual Wira which is much lighter n easier to abuse, but this car definitely has power, I didn't pressed hard enough yet. Since it's a French car, the control for wiper and turning indicator are at reversed position, so u can image seeing the wiper moving when I am trying to turn left/right. I can tell the car is very very stable and very low noticeable vibration/noise from the wheels , I am bias coz I have been driving an aging Wira that always have some problems every now and then ( absorber, tyre alignment, engine moulting, manifold, poor sound proof, suspension...), basically if I test drive any new car I will also say it's better...LOL!

The 407 model I tested was the Premium model which has the GPS navigator and leather seats, but I must say I don't quite like the leather installed ( which give a plus point to get the standard version), and the position of the navigator is not quite handy, probably bcoz I am not used to it yet, but the noise from the GPS sound is irritating...:P The ride was nice , this is probably the 2nd made in French product that I like , the 1st is French toast in case u wonder. Hmm....tempting....



2nd test drive is the 308 Turbo, which I am totally impressed by the super torque of 240Nm/1450rpm, the car responded to the need for speed immediately, nice dash board and speedometer, the only setback is I can't imagine myself driving this Turbo car for the next 7-9years with the moonroof, but I still love to have it as weekend car ( IF I can afford to have one.....). The Vti version failed me immediately the moment I step on the pedal, not bcoz this model is lousy, the Turbo sibling is simply too good that I lost my feel for a lower power car, it's not a fair test, but somehow I can't feel this model any more...




At the same day I also got to test drive the Mazda3 1.6 ( looking for the 2.0 but no where to find...), nice car to drive but lack of many features that are offered by the Lion Marque, rear seats are comfortable, look is very sporty, just not worth the price only.


Gatal me didn't stop test driving during this waiting period, on my outstation trip to Ipoh , I went to test drive the famous Honda City and the New Facelift CRV, as known, the handlings are good for both models, City is actually a pretty nice car to drive around, fast torque response compared to IDSI/VTEC, reclining rear seats is a plus point but the radio set is really disappointingly ugly, what a waste ! Overall specs for City is just normal if compares to Lion marque, waiting period of 4-5months will cool any buying desire off. On the other hand, CRV is always a nice SUV to own, nice dashboard and interface, only set back is the price, haha, anyway, I am just testdriving for fun....:P

That leaves Nissan Slyphy and Forte the only 2 model that I haven't test driven yet...hmm...

New Year, New Car ?

My hero is going to be 8yrs old in June 2010, i think year he will have to go for many major and minor surgeries to get his parts serviced and changed ( I still owe him a proper bumper.... TT.), estimated fees for all the operations may come to thousands...


To give up hero is probably a hard thing to do coz I am a sentimental person ( OK, may be I am more of a semi-mental person...LOL!), but try-driving car is definitely exciting! :D So, I decided to go on a journey to survey and check out what are the latest hot deals.


The 1st car that appeared in my mind is Lancer GTS that is currently under promotion, well, more of under Publicity than the real Promotion deals. Nice engine, good power, futuristic look, young and cool, but after actual viewing the interior, I was rather disappointed , it didn't change much compared to it 1st launch 3 yrs back, nothing get upgraded, and price increased !!! Mitsubishi Lancer, U are always my favourite bcoz of ur Evo version, but I have to cancel u out from my list coz u are not offering enough to match the selling price ! TT

I have always wanted a second hand S60,don't ask me why, I just love it on 1st sight, I know it does look abit old fashion and differ from the popular models like Honda / Toyota / Suzuki. After I went to read about it quite sometime ago, I am totally impressed with the technology Volvo put into this flagship model, features that I found in this model were 1st in its class and 1st in the world, that was years back, but I only start seeing them in the hot brands in recent few years, in other words, it still beat many young generations of new models with what it has got under the hood. :P


2nd hand price for a S60 is do-able for a 5-6yrs old unit, but long term service and maintenence will cost a bomb, I am not sure if I am willing to pay that price yet, but I don't mind test drive it 1st. There are a few units on the market, I am just lazy to go and test drive, may be after CNY I really gonna make some time for it. Perhaps a pre-owned S40 also can be under my consideration...


I like Accord, but not the current model, the facelift before the previous, the one that has long straight taillight, a 2005 unit cost around 85-90K, :D


To save money, i actually consider looking at the 2006/07 City or 2005/06 Altis, then I can still choose to MAX the car's potential without much worry about breaking it, 60-80K is definitely something do-able and worth a thought. How ar ? how to choose ?

If come down to real budget, perhaps a 2007/08 Persona can come under my list, 35-45K, get a 2-3yrs loan and whack the MAX use of the car, then a real UPGRADE in 2012/13... but after read about the car's FC for after 1-2yrs, it's really disappointing, better spend the $$ on 2004 City/Vios...

Anyway, thanks for my coleague Nelson who told me he booked a Forte, I also give chance to Forte. A peep on its features and benefits (typical salesman will do that.....I do that coz I am an analyzer...), very impressive and very nice design, somehow the KIA + NAZA thing never impress me, haunted by a model I never own but witness its horrible FC and resale value... NVM, I will give chance, let's go test drive!


One of nice working friday, Nelson and I took a trip to NAZA to ask for test drive for Forte but I think it's a sign from the GOD, it rained heavily and we never got the chance to try. Instead , I got the chance to view the Peugeot 407 and 308 THP, Peugeot was always priced at high price, I never want to think about it, but this time round I am impressed coz the once expensive 407 ( during CBU import time was RM160,000 ) is now a CKD with a lot of advanced features not offered in the famous A and C models, and the selling price is RM128,888 !!! Don't bother to look at the premium version that give leather seat and GPS navigator system selling at RM136,888 ( which I don't think worth extra 8K ). To top that, the promotion interest rate is 1.75% or a 5K discount , which make it even more affordable...


308 THP is definitely a nice deal, but I haven't liked a compact car yet. Anyway, I have a very totally different view on this car when I actually test driven it the next day, hehehe! wait for my update in next write up...

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Raise the bar

I notice every now then I will check on how am I doing compared to the peers, it has been this way since many years back, I always subconciously want to achieve above what person at my age normally achieved. The last time I checked was 5 years back, so this year I made another check in. Probably I am not doing better compared to ppl to started their business earlier and those who graduated as professionals, but I have a feeling I am doing OK, tht should be the reason why I am feeling comfortable for the past 2years....damn...

So, I started to raise my bar, what skill should I have at this moment and beyond ? How much should be I be making ? Which area of my life I haven't explored ? what are the things that I haven't figured out and put my hands on it? what kind of lifestyle I want to live from now on ?

DAMN....this is hard, coz I actually the distance between me and this new bar is huge, I realise I am no way near the NEW me that I demanded to be. But I know it is not about making myself there, but to make myself on the journey to be there, with a new destination and goal, I will be more open for opportunities and take different actions to be who I want to be and get what I want to get.

SO , NEW me, I am on my way....Don't leave me too far behind pls....

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Weird

YK, why are u being weird when u r with ppl who r not close to u?
Why do u think I m being weird with them ?

Bcoz when u r with us u r normal, when u r with them, u r weird.
Why can't u accept the part of me being weird is simply part of normal me? and like u said, those r ppl who r not close to me, I can't make everyone feeling me normal...

Why can't u just be normal with everyone?
Probably bcoz u already accepted me being weird as normal, u find tht it's weird for others...who is being weird now?

But then ppl can't get u..
Why do i need everyone to get me? I only need ppl who are close to me to get me.

Are u bipolar ? Have u checked with doctor b4 whether u r bipolar ?
hehe, may be I am, may be I am not, but whether I am or not, the most importantly is whether my friends accept me as who I am , not whom I should be as a normal person.

You are weird.
Yes, I am, and u r still my friend.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Finally, it's home


My friend, I wish I could...

She is a nice lady, at least she used to be a nice girl, not that she is not now, but over the years of living in this world, many things had happened to her.

She got married , but she felt lonely, it seems like the life is playing her rather than she is playing for her own life. She wants an exit, but her financial situation doesn't allow her to do so. Thus, she learnt to enjoy this life the way she like, but she is not happy with her life.

I only know her for 1year, somehow I feel that she is an old friend to me.

My friend, it's OK if u feel basic training is BS, and u feel cheated for attending it, it's OK, it doesn't matter even if u hate it. It only serves its purpose when ur intention is to make ur life better, rather than complaint of what n who u can't be can't get. U are collecting evidence that how this can't be possible , that can't be possible, POSSIBLE seems to be the hardest thing to happen in u. I wish I can tell it straight to ur face that STOP being the victim of ur own life, but I hold back, coz I know u will think I am trying to use those jargon on u.

I am sad, coz I know ur life is beautiful, but u don't see it, u already refuse to believe it is beautiful. Life have over the years, consumed the TRUST u have in people and in yourself, u barely believe u can walk out of this circle, u already built up layers of walls that no one should / could tell u what to do, to scold u and to be brutally honest to u. It hurts to see it.

Truth is the only person who can walk out from ur walls is yourself, the training is just a tool and environment for u to work on urself. U don't believe in Basic , it's OK, but don't lose trust in Advanced course, it works, I have seen it in myself, and I have seen in others too, others who are willing , others who want hard enuf for a different life.... I bet u want it too, u just don't believe u CAN want it...

I wish I can empower u to take this risk and I personally want to be there for u when u take that step....