.

The Departure

2011-02-26T23:51:00.001+08:00

It's done, stripping him off his stuffs. Tomorrow, I'll bid goodbye to him who has been dear to me for such long, long time. He was my pillar of strength, my hero, my warrior. He made me proud. He showed me things I've never seen before, offered me experiences that were both new and exhilarating. The journey wouldn't have been the same if it's not for him. I wished tomorrow never come, but circumstances have made it inevitable... this feeling sucks! I'm gonna miss him. What would I do without him?...

Carbon detailing

2011-02-05T14:59:00.001+08:00

This was done a while ago late November:

Before:

After (with 50/50 comparison):

All the A, B, and C pillars are now coated in carbon. So is the kidney grille!

It's a 118i!

2011-01-13T23:28:00.001+08:00

Spotted this Alpine White babybimmer in Cheras near Leisure Mall recently. Owed by a young couple with a baby kid.

Seen from the window of my 120i.

- moblogged frommah iPhone IV.

Home Made Fish Head Meehoon

2010-12-24T13:31:00.001+08:00

This is my second favorite fish head meehoon shop after the "Restoran Kaki Bola" I blogged ages ago.

Pictured above is the fried garoupa which comes in a separate platter with a bowl of meehoon in tasty broth (RM14.90++).

Located on the same row as Chilis & D'licious in Mid Valley.

- moblogged from iPhone4.

Location:Lingkaran Syed Putra,Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

Winter Solstice Festival 2010

2010-12-21T23:44:00.001+08:00

This year's Guo Dong, which falls on Dec 22, was celebrated early. Feast cooked up by mom was simply fantastic!

-moblogged via iP4.

Location:Cheras, Malaysia

Testing Blogpress with iPhone4

2010-12-19T18:02:00.001+08:00

Unfortunate lizard got crushed by MyVi door in a futile attempt to escape the Perodua dungeon.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iP4.

Location:Jalan Suakasih,Batu 9 Cheras,Malaysia

2010 BMW 1-series Mob Drive

2010-02-15T18:42:00.002+08:00

E87 Review by Autocar.co.uk

2010-01-05T13:20:00.004+08:00

For record's sake, here goes the full review of my babybimmer by Autocar.co.uk:

FIRST DRIVE

BMW 120i Sport; Test date: 15 June 2004. Price as tested: £20,735

‘The 1-series is not a space miracle. It’s not intended to be – that would sacrifice too much driver appeal.’

Exactly. In his neat summary, Gerd Schuster, project leader for BMW’s new baby, perfectly captures the essential point of 2004’s most intriguing new Focus/Golf-class car.

Proper sporting cars are rear-wheel drive; BMW set out to build a smaller BMW. That – good (mostly very good) and bad – is exactly what they’ve achieved. The 1-series was never going to be anything other than front-engine, rear-drive – the layout that clarifies Schuster’s description.

The 1-series’ total character – the way it drives, the body’s proportions, the tight rear-seat compartment – all stem directly from the longitudinal positioning of the engine and the decision to adopt rear-wheel drive on a hatchback. To find another ‘new’ small car that goes against the (until now) universal trend to transverse-mounted engine/front-drive layout, you must go back to the first Mazda 323 from the late ’70s.

This is BMW being BMW: confident that, in a class that sells 12 million cars a year globally, there are sure to be 150,000-plus buyers delighted to compromise packaging efficiency for the sake of intense driver appeal. Especially in a car wearing a premium badge.

As Audi discovered with the A3 (seen by Munich as the 1-series’ closest rival, along with high-end VW Golfs and Alfa’s 147) price is comparatively unimportant on compact prestige models. When the 1-series goes on sale across the world on 18 September, there are going to be plenty of customers prepared to pay well over 20 grand for the privilege. The humble 114bhp 1.6-litre 116i starts at £15,690 (£180 over the equivalent A3), the 120i Sport tested sells for £20,170 and the 120d SE £20,800, all without dipping in to the extensive, too-often essential, options list.

Still, to the person behind the wheel, it’s a no-brainer concept. The 120i drives like a more agile, more refined, smaller 318i. And that means altogether differently to the competition. You won’t find any front-drive rival with the same level of chassis poise (no, not even the Ford Focus), the same consistency of weighting of major controls and, best of all, steering that is as pure, as linear, and utterly unscathed by torquesteer. Simply because there is no torquesteer. Impossible. ‘The axle that steers should not have the burden of also powering the car,’ says Schuster, ignoring for a moment that BMW is also responsible for the front-drive Mini.

Achieving BMW’s traditional 50/50 weight distribution meant moving the engine rearwards, almost behind the front axle line, and shifting the battery to the boot floor, where the spare wheel normally sits. Except there isn’t one: all 1-series were conceived around run-flat tyres.

The cabin is long, the roofline extending the rear overhang well beyond the hatchback norm. The 1-series gets the longest wheelbase – 2660mm (up 80mm on the new Golf, and just 65mm shy of the 3-series) – in its class. Likewise, the overall length (at 4227mm, 23mm longer than the Golf), but the long-bonnet styling and an intrusive transmission tunnel eat into rear-seat space and restrict the fuel tank to a marginal 50 litres.

Most of the chassis elements are shared with next year’s 3-series: aluminium front struts with an alloy sub-frame, new five-link steel rear suspension, a stability control system that can be turned off and slightly more powerful 1.6- and 2.0-litre petrol and turbodiesel engines. A 1.8 will arrive in December. Brakes are by discs all round and the 120i/d and 118d get a choice of six-speed manual or automatic gearboxes – the 116i is five-speed manual only.

Nothing of consequence has changed from the engineering prototypes that so impressed us in the south of France earlier this year (23 March). The suspension engineers have softened the dampers a little to improve ride comfort, but made no changes to spring rates, bushes or anti-roll bars. They’ve succeed, too, though not without detracting just a smidgen from the mule’s darty handling. Few will care; only a handful of those who drove the early cars will notice. You still won’t find a better-handling compact hatchback.

Plug the electronic key into its slot, 7-series style, press the gimmicky start/stop button (from the Z8) and the 148bhp four (up 5bhp on the version in the 3-series) instantly whirrs, quickly settling down to a new, silent idle. The Hams-Hall built dohc four gets double Vanos variable intake and exhaust camshaft control and valvetronic valve lift, plus twin balancer shafts. The emphasis on refinement and economy, rather than peak output, is obvious, for it’s a sweet unit across a broad rev range, getting agitated only over the last 250rpm to the 6500rpm red line. The 148lb ft of torque crests at 3600rpm, and max power arrives at 6200rpm.

Operate in this range and the performance is sparkling, if not inspired, provided you’re willing to make free use of the typically slick BMW gearchange. What mitigates against the performance is tall gearing and 1260kg of mass. In the interests of steady-state fuel consumption (an impressive 37.7mpg in the combined cycle), sixth (at 25.9mph per 1000rpm) is an overdrive – the 135mph v-max arriving in fifth. Fourth gear becomes the ratio of choice; sixth is reserved for relaxed high-speed cruising, a gearing trend begun at BMW with the current Five and certain to extend across virtually all future models.

To enthusiasts, the frustration is the chassis’ obvious ability to accept more power. One look under the bonnet reveals plenty of space for two extra cylinders: 122i, 125i and 130i models are in the pipeline as the 1-series range expands to include coupé, cabriolet, estate, even a half-saloon/half-MPV and, inevitably, though BMW denies the programme is signed-off, an M2. Until then, the 161bhp 120d is the fastest One: its 7.9sec 0-62mph time beating the petrol 2.0-litre by 0.8sec. To emphasise the diesel’s power and torque advantage, according to BMW’s figures, it takes just 6.6sec to get from 50-75mph in fourth gear, where the petrol version demands 8.4sec.

No wonder Munich left the 116i and 118d behind during the official launch: they don’t want to create an impression any 1-series is underpowered, especially at the price. Equally, of course, there is immense satisfaction in wringing out an eager petrol engine to fully exploit terrific handling and grip, both of which the 120i has in spades.

The impact of BMW’s layout is immediately obvious in the steering. No loss of directional stability, no twitching of the wheel in the driver’s hands on wet roads, no deflection by bumps under power. The list goes on and on: the steering’s self-centring remains near constant, the inherent balance of the weight distribution means there is no inclination to plough off the road nose first in dogged understeer. Instead, the driver gets a constantly weighted, hydraulically powered steering – no electric assistance here – that’s accurate and quick and fluent on turn-in. Combined with tight body control, it imparts agile and neutral handling.

Because all the basics are in place, the 120i demands to be driven quickly. You want to lean on the outside Bridgestones, playing with the One’s cornering attitude. But, even with the DTC (traction control) and DSC (stability control) deactivated, there is so much grip on the optional 17-inch wheels that there aren’t enough horses to adjust the line on the throttle, at least in the dry.

Tuning the dampers for greater comfort brings a welcome increase in suspension compliance, while reducing the sharp restless motion that upset the early prototypes. Tyre and road noise are also remarkably low. This is going to make a fine long-distance cruiser, as well as a foot-through-the-firewall, back-road blaster.

On German roads (and I suspect the UK’s) the ride is excellent and ideally suited to the 120i’s sporting character. There’s a touch of lean at the front end entering a corner, just enough to prove you’re trying, but because the rate of roll is slow and so quickly contained it’s never an issue. Besides, any body movement is well constrained over humps and low-frequency undulations, which are soaked up and largely ignored.

Makes you wonder why everybody switched to transverse engines. Well, only until you try climbing into the rear compartment. This is a them-and-us cabin. Those up front are treated kindly: legs straight ahead, good forward visibility (if poor over-the-shoulder vision), high gearlever close to the wheel, sports bucket seats (with adjustable lateral support) that can be lowered sufficiently to suit those who like their bum on the road. In terms of comfort, space and amenities, it could be a 3-series. But unless the driver and front passenger are below average height, rear-seat leg- and knee-room are ridiculously tight. Getting your feet into and out of the footwell is also difficult because the lower door opening is so narrow. An intrusive transmission tunnel means any child attempting to take advantage of the three-point centre belt sits high, and uncomfortably, over any distance.

No complaints about the seat itself, or the degree of headroom, but without exception all the One’s front-wheel-drive rivals beat it hands down in terms of rear-seat accommodation.

The dashboard is simple and belongs to the X3/Z4 school of design. Neat, more businesslike than luxurious, but attractive, with all the major controls ergonomically placed. Not so BMW’s notorious, optional iDrive – £1840 on the base models (because it also brings air conditioning), £1230 on the Sport and £1020 on the SE. It’s just as annoying and lacking in intuitiveness as in the Five, Six or Seven.

All models get a CD-player, six airbags and a trip-computer. The SE adds 16-inch alloys, auto climate control, fog lights, a leather steering wheel, rear parking sensors and a few other toys, while the Sport merits sports trim, body-coloured exterior fitments, sports seats and lower sports suspension.

And the styling? Glad you asked. When the photographs first arrived in the Autocar office they were greeted with embarrassed silence, then by laughter. Seeing bunches of Ones together in a normal streetscape it’s no longer shocking. But upon seeing the new hatch for the first time in the metal, our resident design graduate, Adam Towler, said: ‘It’s immeasurably better than in the photographs. There’s a lot going on at the front, and they’ve not been successful in integrating all the ideas, but the stance is strong and it looks like a BMW.’

The many complex shapes include tail lights with six separate and diverse edges, and convex and concave contours in the body sides. In profile, the preponderance of visual weight over the back wheels – emphasised by the elongated roofline and rear overhang – detracts from styling’s vibrancy. Don’t make a judgement until you’ve seen BMW’s hatch on the road. Pretty it may not be, but it’s not to be dismissed, either.

The 1-series doesn’t set out to be a Golf or a Focus. But the appeal of a BMW hatchback that drives like a more refined, more agile 3-series adds a new dimension to a class that’s become moribund in terms of technical innovation and choice. Expensive or not, the One changes all that to instantly become the driver’s choice in the class.

Peter Robinson.

Identical Twins Spotted!

2009-10-01T09:14:00.006+08:00

Went to Menara Dion yesterday to finalise my stolen Accord's claims with Tokio Marine, and spotted my E87's identical twins bearing the reg. no. KBR xx at the carpark.

It has the same Quartz Blue paint and identical interiors. But noticed KBR's ride's lower compared to mine. Maybe different rim size? Rims are of a different design too.

It's rare to find a 1'er on the road, let alone sharing the next parking lot.

Also posted in BMWCM.

My First BMW: E87 1-Series

2009-08-27T21:36:00.000+08:00

Being the owner of an Accord 2.4 for about 7-months before it got stolen, it's real hard to find another ride that's comparable to it in terms of spaciousness and smooth power delivery. Went to test drive the latest Mazda6 and found the cabin to be cramped, although built quality and features are better compared to the Honda. And at 175K, I could easily get a re-cond E90 3-Series.

Thus, I searched and searched for the missing link, the Bimmer! I bought car mags, visited car showrooms. My criteria were that it must be in Alpine White, dark interior, Jap-specced, tip-top condition, +/- M-Sport bodykits. The asking price was >RM200K!

Due to the fact that I still have to service the instalment for my stolen Accord, the E90 and thus Bimmer, remained a dream. Until my uncle called one day, informing there's a unit of E87 in very good running condition in his friend's showroom.

This Quartz Blue babybimmer is a 2004 model, registered end Dec '04. Mileage was 47K, accident free. Previous owner was a Chinese lady in her 30's. Full service record at Auto Bavaria was provided with the car, too!

Apart from a few small coin-sized dents on the body panels, this blue 1'er is flawless. I jumped in immediately for a test-drive with my uncle seated in the passenger seat.

Tranny is 6-speed auto with steptronic in DS mode. Kicked-down the pedal along Kajang-Silk highway, and this baby roared to 160kph effortlessly. My uncle was scared shitless (he drives a CLK anyways) ...

And upon returning to the shop, I confirmed the purchase with the dealer. This is your's truly's first Bimmer! More on my 1er later - tagged under "E87 Journal".

The Departure of K24Z2

2009-08-20T11:01:00.000+08:00

In the wee hours of July 11th, 2009, my front gate was broken into and my beloved G8 Accord 2.4 stolen right from my porch, driven away, uneventfully...

I got up early that Saturday morning for my weekend rounds at the hospital, expecting to be greeted by my shiny Accord. Instead, an empty porch (with wifey's brand new City untouched) greeted me, with the sodomised main gate spreading wide.

What ensued was pretty routine, if you have had a car stolen - heartache, Accord-sick, police report, unnecessary waiting + stupid procedures, insurance claims, getting a secondary car, and shopping for a new ride. And of course, replacing the missing essential items that went away with the thieving bastards.

I counted myself lucky as I have this silly habit of keeping my wallet and sometimes netbook in the car, which thankfully I didn't on the previous night. All in all, I lost 2 stethoscopes, Smart Tag + TouchN'Go worth RM200+, my Sony Ericsson W880i cellphone, and a few thumbdrives for USB Audio. All minor nothings compared to the car itself, sob sob!

I guess if something's not meant to be, it's not meant to be! So adios, WSD 8208!

My K24Z2

2009-01-29T13:36:00.012+08:00

This is my latest, most expensive toy to date - meet the K24Z2! Donned in a beautiful Alabaster Silver Metallic, this gigantic beast is a technological marvel.

The engine bay is devoid of huge gaps/empty space - it is filled with goodies!

The 2.4-litre i-VTEC (codenamed K24Z2), a straight-4, 16-valve DOHC powerhouse produces a max power of 180PS (~177BHP/133kW) @ 6,500rpm. Max torque of 222Nm is achieved @ 4,300rpm. The K24Z2 provides silky smooth power for all driving condition; floor the pedal and the i-VTEC roars once the rpm passes 3,500. Exhilarating!

It comes with a cold-air intake inlet as standard...

... and a strut bar, two of the many items not seen in the lower specced 2.0 VTi.

Interior is all-black, which is sporty unlike the bright-beige + woodgrain garnishing in the 2.4 Camry. Centre dashboard is dotted with buttons which gives it a plane cockpit feel.

I dunno bout you guys, but I prefer the conventional analog meter over the Civic's futuristic digital odometers. The guys at Honda claimed the K24Z2 remains stable and planted at speed in excess of 200km/h, a speed which yours truly had not tested during this breaking-in period.

Spirited driving can be achieved thanks to the "S" mode coupled with the F1-styled paddle shifts. Bring the rpm into the iVTEC zone and the K24Z2 roars.

The headlights themselves are a work of wonder, it is HUGE. Comes with HID as stock, the colour temperature might be around 3,000-4,000. It is bright daylight-white when first turned on, and gradually turns into a yellowish hue. The only mod I did for the headlight was to replace the small light bulbs to superwhite LED bulbs, which costs RM60 per pair.

I liked the above angle the most, which reminisce the 5-Series' sexy arse. Notice the rear boot spoiler a.k.a. "ducktail" from Honda's Modulo, which costs me RM920. It actually did a liposuction effect on the K24Z2's massive J-Lo arse.

The rollers are 17", wrapped in Goodyear's 225/50 R17 94V rubbers. Tire noise can be intrusive with this particular brand, am thinking of switching to Conti rubbers for a quieter ride and grippier feel. It is nonetheless handsome in stock condition.

Germany's Hüper Optik® tinting films wrapped the windows all around, with non-legal blackness covering the side windows. Catch me if you can!

Make no mistake, it is a 2.4 iVTEC (pre-ECU reflash @177BHP)!
More horses to join the stable real soon!

Goodbye 4G15P

2009-01-28T13:12:00.003+08:00

I decided to sell off my trusty 5 y.o. 4G15P last December, and it's finally sold to a Malay owner last week for RM21K. It was a great deal for him I must say, coz besides the very tip-top condition of the car, the plate number 8606 came out as top-prize in Toto the next day he bought the car (I was told the guy wanted to invest RM100 in Toto). *$&%(*$&%($&%...

On the other hand, I've been driving my brand new K24Z2 since 01/01/09, and the upgrade from 88BHP (from 4G15P) to 180PS is pure awesomeness. I'm waiting for the finance to pay out the RM21K, so that I can reflash my ECU and re-chip the EMS. That'd easily boost my K24z2 to an excess of 200BHP! Then it'll be the flywheel... and disc brake upgrades...

More pics and updates soon when I'm free, probably the nxt CNY! Happy "NIU" Year guys and gals!

Unboxing iPod Touch

2008-09-26T15:50:00.003+08:00

This is a farewell gift for my sister who's flying off to Qatar next month. The purchase induced an intense morbid jealousy from my better half, LOL!

My only experience of iPod Touch was the touching sessions at MAChines outlets. The interface is superb, and with WiFi functionality it'll be an ideal music+video player for sis who would be a frequent flyer soon!

Turning on the Touch out of the box will bring up a screen that asks for a PC/Laptop USB connection with the latest version of iTune installed. No preview musics, videos, or games whatsoever. Blank! Blardy hell.

With that, I applied the screen protector and replaced everything back into the box. For RM1400, I get to experience the unboxing part of the iPod Touch. Woohoo... tears of blood oozing out already!

Langkawi Part 6: Finale

2008-09-26T14:36:00.008+08:00

Finally, the final part of our Langkawi 2008 escapade, after a good 5-month delay. Enjoying my current week-long leave brings back good memories from the beach, so here goes:

We visited the Langkawi Underwater World, which is a far cry in terms of standards compared to UnderwaterWorld S'pore and Thailand. The entrance fees weren't cheap, but we enjoyed the tour nevertheless.

The man, pre-housemanship, when the myocytes and fibrils were still titanium-strong.

After 2 afternoons of sunbathing with half a bottle of Banana Boat's suntanning lotion washed down the drain, the result was a bit dismal. The mild tanning effect disappeared in a month's time!

On our last day on the island, we raided the duty-free shops for perfumes, chocolates, and hard (non-meconium-stained) liquor.

We got chocolates with authentic alcohol fillings for everyone. I bought a few miniatures of Martells for mummy dearest, and a huge kickass bottle of Martell Cordon Bleu at a kick ass price for future binging session.

To sum it up, the trip was an enjoyable and memorable one. Five months down the road after a gruelling housemanship O&G posting, I'm yearning for another beach trip! Redang anyone?!

Aaaahhh... bitch...

Click here for Langkawi Part 1-5.

Unboxing HTC Tytn II

2008-08-11T20:05:00.011+08:00

Here it is, I'm baring my sexy naked lady for all to see!

Sliding off the outer cardboard reveals a solid black box with a silver HTC emblem on the top. The black boxing is secured by a magnetic flap, upon which if flipped, would reveal a sexy naked being...

The HTC Tytn II with Windows Mobile 6.1!

To those who are familiar with Tytn II, you may find the home screen (Today) shown above is not of the HTC Home plugin. The latest machines still do come installed with HTC Home, just that I've switched it to SPB Mobile Shell v2.1. It works wonders, more on it later.

For RM2400, the Tytn II came with a 4Gb microSD, a cool HTC pouch, and all the basic stuffs. The package also entitled me to have a Jabra bluetooth handsfree headset for free:

Since I have an iTech iClip bluetooth headset which could connect two phones simultaneously, I'm willing to let this macho-looking Jabra off to the highest bidder. So to those who are in need of serious machoism, move yer lazy arses and start bidding now! Price starts from RM70.

Ol' haggard Clie TH55, meet the new lady - Tytn II!

As with any of my previous gadgets, I'm quite anal about protection. Evidence, scroll up and look at my 3-year old Clie TH55. Instead of using the HTC pouch, which is just a belt clip, I bought a Dr. Ion pouch from Kinokuniya KLCC, which can be secured by a belt.

Wearing this brick-size gadget to work makes me look like "Bob-the-Builder".

Dr. Ion for Tytn II, Dr. Ion for W880i.

Can be worn with a belt, or strapped around a belt.

Installing SPB Mobile Shell and SPB Phone Suite turned the already strong Tytn to near invincible. Total invincibility would mean to slash the thickness to quarter its current thickness. The SPB Diary, SPB Insight, and SPB Backup are the other softwares from SPB that I'm also using in tandem with Mobile Shell. The SPB Diary enhances the PPC's PIM a lot, it doesn't matter anymore how strong Palm's PIM is.

Mobile Shell's screen gesture in action.

Map King GPS - awesomely accurate!

It comes preloaded with MalSing map, which covers West + East Malaysia and Singapore. It is gonna be handy come December during my trip to Singapore!

Here are some pictures taken by the Tytn II's 3.0MP camera:

This shot was taken during one of my weekend calls, when I had to be a hero and follow the ambulance to Kg. Medan where a mother gave birth to a baby at home, with the umbilical cord still intact. The hero slashed the hardened umbilical cord, and saved the mother from impending death. Yes, it occured in a construction site. And the mother was hidden deep inside a second-floor cave.

A caricature of my uncle and his soon-to-be bride on their wedding card. The BMW GS1100 Adventure does exist, I wonder if they're gonna use that for their wedding vehicle. Coolness if they do! I can follow them with my Orange Beast, LOL!

Patient A - both hands.

Patient A - close up.

Still Patient A - forearms.

You can offer your diagnosis if you like.
In conclusion, Tytn II rocks!

New Toy

2008-07-29T21:14:00.006+08:00

Got myself a new toy over the weekend as my two-month salary invaded my bank account last week! This is a long overdue addition to my arsenal of gizmos, as my last PDA (Sony Clié TH55) is now a national antique.

Tytn II itself is not the latest product from HTC. The Diamond is. But what the hell, the specs between Tytn II and Diamond are about the same (latest Tytn II's are upgraded to WM 6.1), and Tytn II comes with a bad-ass looking qwerty keyboard! Machoism redefined!

Rumours had it that the Diamond equivalent of Tytn II, the HTC Touch Pro will hit the stores around year end. Sony's upcoming iPhone wannabe, Xperia X1 too, will be released around the same time. The impatient K.K. just couldn't wait that much longer, and bought the Tytn II for RM2400.

Coming up: Unboxing Tytn II

The Week So Far...

2008-06-22T21:04:00.008+08:00

I reported for work at UMMC on Monday, and subsequently took the whole day off to get some paperwork done. Tuesday was the official working day! I was posted into O&G department. Despite the fact that O&G is a branch of medicine I'm not quite fond of, I got it for my Semester 10 exit exam (the index patient was a case of post-date, which was quite straight forward), and I get it for my first HO posting! WTF, I refuse to believe I'm fated to be an O&G specialist. *puke puke*

It's been a week so far, and I must say I'm enjoying my posting quite A LOT! Not that I've grown fond of O&G, not in a million years to come! Just that the department (Labour Ward) I'm currently in is very very relaxing. It's so chilling up to a point I just walk up and down the aisle doing nothing till I punch out of work on Wednesday, that's how free we were!

To start with, the current HOs are a bunch of steady kaki who are very fun to be with. They impart the essential knowledge for survival, and covered my fresh arse as well. Work typically starts at 0730hrs, lunch time could be as early as 1100hrs and stretch up till 1300hrs. Time off work is 1700hrs. I decided to tag on Thursday and managed to suture up two torn pussies (due to labour) and went home at 2100hrs. Also managed to hit the gym four times this week!

While most of my cohorts need to tag till at least 2300hrs everyday, weekends included, I got my Sunday off. And Saturday was from 0730 to 1030hrs! What a life... am enjoying this while I still can, till the current HOs get transferred out in about 1-2 mths time. Gonna pack my gym bag for tomorrow!

Convocation Photos

2008-05-25T18:38:00.003+08:00

Heart Surgery

2008-05-22T00:46:00.000+08:00

The heart, codenamed 4G15P

During my recent 65,000km service interval, my mechanic noticed the presence of engine oil and some carbon deposits on two of my spark plugs. The engine is consuming engine oil, he added casually, and further went on and said my 5-year old engine needed a top-overhaul!

Now you may have heard people saying their 10 or 20-year old car needed a total-overhaul, which practically includes dismantling the whole engine, fix all of the faulty components, and putting it back. What is top-overhaul then?

A top-overhaul on the other hand consists of just replacing the valve seals, head gaskets, valve cover gaskets, cleaning of the valve and reposition them. Usually, the mechanic would also replace the timing belt and have the water pump inspected. The quoted price for a top-overhaul ranges from RM500 - 2500, depending of the severity of wear and tear.

Valve seals

A friend of mine suggested to have only the valve seals replaced, because the cause of carbon depositing onto the spark plugs is usually hardened valve seals. Plus, my 4G15P is only 5 years old and had done a meagre 65,000km. Replacement of valve seals requires baring the top part of the engine block, a procedure similar to open-heart surgery but still less invasive than a top-overhaul. With that, I sent my car to my trusted mechanic for valve seal replacement today!

I stayed in the shop for a while, witnessing two valves being replaced successfully by the trusted mechanic's son (he is a suave 28-year old and constantly talking on his cellphone). As there are altogether 12 valves to be replaced, I walked to a nearby coffeeshop for a drink. Minutes later, my mechanic friend called. "Problem!", he said. His son accidentally dropped one of the valve deep into the heart chamber, rendering it irretrievable. He was supposed to engage a gear and cog the piston up to stop the valve from dropping, but apparently he was having some telephone-sex with someone! A supposedly 2-hour operation is stretched to 36-hours! What the heck, I get a top-overhaul done for the cost of valve-replacement, which is less than RM100! Am getting my car back in a few hours time!

Asian Festival Of Speed

2008-05-18T22:57:00.013+08:00

A heavily modded Nissan Skyline GTR

My mechanic friend offered me two free tickets to Asian Festival Of Speed (AFOS '08) at Sepang when I went service my car last evening. I grabbed it without hesitation as we've nothing planned for Sunday!

Honda NSX of the GT Super Series

We saw these two fancy cars at the entrance - the Nissan Skyline GTR and Honda NSX with super wide bodies. These cars will be featured in the coming GT Super Series in June!

GT Super Series!

We reached quite early, at about 9.00 am. The place was still barren. Walking to the grandstand seems like an eternity when there's so few people around!

Grandstand area

The moment we stepped onto the staircase leading to the grandstand area, the blaring engine sound began to roar down the main straight of the Sepang circuit. That signalled the formation laps for the first race of the day - the Asian Touring Car Series (ATCS).

This race is dominated by the super-duper loud Porches, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis. There was a lone Lotus Elise too!

Two Porches battling it out

A black Ferrari

Ferrari retiring into the pit

Another Ferrari

Yet another Ferrari!

My favourite car, the Lamborghini Murcielago

It's not as fast or as loud as the froggy Porches, but it sure spells S-U-P-E-R-C-A-R!

Look how fast the Lamborghini zoom past, taken with the Hi-Speed Shutter turned off

Our "Kleenex" earplugs

Next was the ACTS 1500Max category. This category has an engine restriction of 1,500cc for all participating cars. There are strict regulations of engine and body modifications, except the cars' front bumpers and rear spoilers. These cars are not as loud as the previous category, and thus not as fast!

A 6th generation Honda Civic (without high-speed shutter)

Same car, with high-speed shutter

Satria Neo from the Proton Axle Racing Team

The same Neo, with high-speed shutter on

Another Civic

Safety car - BMW 3-Series (likely a kitted 325 Sports model)

We stayed on for the next race, the Formula V6 Asia. These cars looked and sounded like the real deal F1 cars! Fast and furious...

By the end of the race, my camera's battery is starting to go into total exhaustion. I thought I'd charged up my spare battery, but it went dead the moment I slotted it in! Damn tu-lan! The next race was equally exciting, featuring modded BMWs, Honda DC5s, the latest Civics, and a few Puntos and Mitsu Colts!

Leading the pack from pole was this white & blue BMW, driven by newbie Jack Lemvard. The sound produced by his car was almost melodious - soft whirring rocket turbine would best decribe it. I'm guessing it's the supercharger! None of the cars in the field sounded like this car. The DC5s sounded the worst! Lemvard went on to win the race, overtaken by an Integra a few times, but in the end stretched it to a few seconds of lead! Fantastic driving!

We left around noon. By then the crowd had started to get larger, more people are strolling in. We were hungry, there wasn't any foodstall there. I think I might go for the Super GT Series in June, with charged battery pack that is!

Langkawi Part 5: Waterfall & Cablecar

2008-05-07T22:02:00.009+08:00

Telaga Tujuh Waterfall

Oriental Village - Cable Car

Supplements Online

2008-05-07T12:04:00.006+08:00

My parcel, freshly flown in from Miri, Sarawak yesterday!

I am always sceptical about buying stuff online, but the prices are dang irresistible! I ordered my stuff on Monday, it was supposed to reach yesterday. But due to some communication hiccups (on their side), my stuff was only shipped from Miri yesterday evening. And it reached my doorsteps at 1130hrs this morning!

I was fervently tracking down my parcel online, too!

The transaction was simple. Make a cash deposit/fund transfer into the seller's Maybank account. Then SMS him your name, address, and the product you want. That simple! You'll be unwrapping your parcel the next day, at the comfort of your own home!

A peek of what's inside!

Yup, that's my new tub of hardcore protein! Now that my supplement is replenished (my muscles were starved for ONE whole day, liquid chicken [egg whites] doesn't help!), I can rush off to the gym... yay!

Fresh out of the box! Expiry late 2009.

For comparison sake, my first tub of Muscletech's Nitrotech Hardcore was bought from an ex-trainer friend for RM320 per tub (4 lbs). GNC Stores are selling the same thing for RM499 (even after member's 20% discount it's still a colossal RM399.20)!

Chocolate (empty), Vanilla (new)

A better sports supplement store (compared to GNC) located in Aman Suria, Damansara by the name of EGOnutritions is selling the same thing for RM360.

Spot the difference!

Now guess how much I got my Nitrotech for?...
...
...
...

a superb RM265!

~~Diu~~ Deal or no ~~diu~~ deal? ~~Diu~~ Deal la! Now where did I get it from? Point your cursor [here].

Replenished! Aaahhh...

Product content. Click to enlarge! More [here].

Shit Happens

2008-05-04T13:15:00.000+08:00

Barger, kena saman again! These fellas seriously got nothing better to do one, standing on the highway divider shooting laser at cars. Catching unemployed medical graduate driving a little over the speed limit in a hurry to the gym! Think I din see you, idiotic pot-bellied sucker! I lazy to brake only... there goes my new tub of protein! Fcuks!!!

Langkawi Part 4: Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan

2008-05-03T15:04:00.006+08:00

MAY HIANG SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

We had our first meal on arrival at May Hiang, near Holiday Villa at Pantai Tengah. It was about 1.00pm, and there was one occupied table. The other restaurants we surveyed were either closed or had zero customers. We later learned the customers occupying the table at May Hiang were actually their own employers.

The boss was a bit pushy, asking us to order lobster for lunch! WTF? When we pretended to have missed his lobster suggestion, he went on blabbering about their famous tiger prawns, mangroove crabs, fishes and other exotic marine creatures. The price was explosively expensive too, compared to the already expensive KL seafood pricing.

The thirst quenchers

We finally settled for two plates of fried rice - Thai style and Penang style, a serving of their specialty "Boneless Chicken Wings in Special Sauce", plus two whole coconuts.

Their oily fried rice

The wallet-ripping, specially expensive mutated chicken wings

Chicken: see, mutation rendered me no bones!

The fried rice were soaked in oil, tasted bland, and have nothing much in them other than rice. The mutated chicken wings tasted okay, but I couldn't help dissecting them and analysing what's inside. Not much fat I found, just chunks of suspicious meat.

The pricing:
Thai style fried rice = RM6.00
Penang style fried rice = RM5.00
Boneless chicken wings = RM18.00 (for 2 pieces)
Coconuts x 2 = RM10.00

Verdict:
Will NOT go again!

TANG LUNG SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

Tang Lung Restaurant is located on the same side of the Jalan Pantai Tengah stretch as May Hiang. Unlike May Hiang, the boss at Tang Lung was a friendly lot and suggested us practical food portion (their menu came in sizes of small, medium, and large). The food, although not exactly cheap, were appropriately priced.

Another shot at the restaurant's entrance

Tang Lung is Chinese for lanterns, so don't be a jakun when you see many lanterns of various shapes and sizes decorating the dining place.

Lanterns lanterns everywhere

For our dinner, we ordered Stir Fried Baby Kailan with Garlic, Dried Chili Mantis Prawn, their Specialty Home-made Tofu, ...

Clockwise fr left: Mantis prawn, veggie, tofu

... and their famous Dry Fried Salted Egg Crab. Their crabs were priced in the deceiving grams - RM7.00 per 100gms.

The dry fried salted-egg crab

The food were generally okay. I found the salted-egg crab a tad salty, lacking in the salted-egg aroma, a little too oily, and dry. I very much prefer the non-fried, wet version from Seremban's Choy Kee! I just luuurrve Choy Kee's salted-egg crabs!

The pricing:
Stir fried baby kailan (S) = RM8.00
Dried chili mantis prawn (S) = RM12.00
Home-made tofu (M) = RM12.00
Dry fried salted egg crab = RM49.00
100 Plus x 1 = RM2.50
Plain water = Free

Verdict:
Worth going again!

THE LOAF

The Loaf Langkawi, owned by our ex-premier Tun Mahathir, is located at Perdana Quay, Telaga Harbour Park of Pantai Kok. Yes, the same ~~Cock Beach~~ Kok Beach where the fateful car incident happened!

The menu - notice the fly on the top-right corner? Irritating buggers!

Liked the interior decor and the ambience. Disliked the flies! Seems like every eatery outlets in Langkawi are infested with flies!

Cruiser yatchs and boats outside The Loaf

The energy-sapping car incident made us order their yummy-looking beverages to cool ourself down - from both the heat from the sun as well as the frustrative heat aroused by the "junk metal".

The "Famous Ice Latte" (left) and the "Langkawi Sunset" (right)

Chilled Tomato Soup

Spaghetti Aglio Olio

Oriental Chicken Salad

The Famous Ice Latte tasted like any mamak kopi-ping, nothing great. Wonder how it got famous. Langkawi Sunset? Ditto. Disliked the cream toppings! The Oriental Chicken Salad was good according to her. I didn't try though. Didn't like the cold tomato soup, makes me shudder. She liked it though. Weirdo!

But my shrimp spaghetti came with real, succulent prawns! The spaghetti sauce was too oily.

The pricing:
Famous Ice Latte = RM12.00
Langkawi Sunset = RM10.00
Oriental Chicken Salad = RM18.00
Chilled Tomato Soup = RM14.00
Spaghetti Aglio Olio = RM32.00

Verdict:
Why go again? Pavillion also got what!

THE L'OSTERIA ITALIAN RESTAURANT & BAR

Our initial intention was to go to the El Toro Espanol Tapas, Bar & Cafe, but it was closed. So we made do with this Italian restaurant right next to it. The food was great!

Fruit juice

Grilled whole seabass

L'osteria's signature pizza

The food weren't too expensively priced. A glass of wine is cheaper compared to other places, but it's still much much cheaper to buy a whole bottle from the duty-free shops elsewhere! The pizza was fastastico marveloussa! I loved their pizza so much I was contemplating of tapao-ing one for supper one night! The best pizza I've ever tried in my whole life! Maybe that's because I've only had Pizza Hut's, Shakey's, and Jusco's pizzas in my entire life, LOL!

The pricing:
Lost the receipt, but the total was RM81.40 (from credit card transaction). Roughly...
Grilled whole seabass = RM20+
Pizza = RM40+
Drinks = RM20?

Verdict:
Please, open a few outlets in KL!

ORKID RIA SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

We passed by Orkid Ria one evening and saw it was fully saturated with hungry people! Curious, we went for dinner on our last day there. Orkid Ria didn't disappoint!

Their pictorial menu was great, and the food were cheap too! There were generous amount of variety to choose from, generally a great place to dine in. Except for one thing - the BLARDY FLIES!

Buttered Prawns and Belacan Asparagus

Sweet & Sour Red Snapper

Thai-style duck (half portion)

All in all, the food were good la. Lazy to comment already. In a nutshell, be sure to go to this restaurant if you're in Langkawi. Forget about May Hiang, Tang Lung, and the other what-nots. This is the place to dine if you're looking for cheap, sumptuous, oriental food! And oh, it's located along Pantai Cenang Road. If you're driving from The Aseania, it's on your left. If you're travelling from the Langkawi Airport, it's on your right la, where else?!

The pricing:
Buttered Prawns = RM18.00
Red snapper (390gm) = RM23.40
Thai-style Duck (Half) = RM26.00
Belacan Asparagus = RM10.00
Watermelon juice = RM3.50
Mixed fruit juice = RM5.00

Verdict:
Stupid if never go!

Gunung Nuang

2008-05-02T11:46:00.013+08:00

Gunung Nuang (1493m/4898ft), located at the end of the Ulu Langat road in Pangsun, is the tallest mountain peak in Selangor and is touted as a "more difficult" climb by many. Being the masochist that I am, I attempted Nuang with Dr James & gang yesterday.

Since this is my first time attempting Nuang, I did some research online, and found this: average 6hrs up, 5hrs down, totalling 11hrs! Dumbfounded, I packed two 1.5L drinking water, one 500mL drinking water, 2 cans of 100Plus, 2 Powerbars, 2 Powergels, 2 cans of Tuna in water, 2 buns from BreadStory, and some crackers. I was prepared to get stranded and spend a night in the mountain in case of calamities, LOL!

The wooden arch into Gunung Nuang

The initial plan by Jimbo & Co. was to start climbing latest by 06oohrs. Me, Wong (a friend of Jimbo's), and Raj (IMU Semester 8) were the earliest to reach at 0540hrs. The gang eventually arrived at about 0700hrs -_-

Group pic before climb - click to enlarge!

The actual climb started at 0730hrs. The initial climb was more like a walk, relatively smooth uphill and downhill track still accessible by motorbikes.

The initial track

The track took us to the first camp of the trail - Kem Lolo. Me and another IMU junior by the name of Ong reached here first, taking roughly 1hr and 15mins. Ong attacked the trail like a 100m sprinter - very fast. I had to increase my pace to catch up with him!

The first pit-stop

Ong wanted to go on, but I decided to stop and munch a PowerBar and gulp a packet of PowerGel. Afterall it's just 1hr 15mins of a 6hr-long climb, I thought! He must be cursing at my sissy-ness, and walked up to a nearby stream to snap some photos. Soon enough part of the group arrived.

The relatively shallow river (1st river crossing) at Kem Lolo

The grueling journey starts after Kem Lolo. All the notorious river crossings, muddy and steep terrain, and the slimy leeches are found from here upwards. All in all, there were 5 river crossings on the way up. The first 2 were shallow and I managed to hop around the stones to get over. The water level for the remaining 3 were knee-deep, it's impossible to get through without soaking our boots. I took off my footwear and waded through the strong stream current.

A millipede - Taken at Kem Pacat

I helped a number of trekkers at the river crossings - some old aunties and uncles who didn't want to wet their shoes, and some youngsters too. From the last river crossing, I increased my pace to catch up with our team leader, Ong, and together we reached the second camp, Kem Pacat, in about 1hr 30mins from Kem Lolo. We were the first climbers of the day to reach Kem Pacat! Downing a can of 100Plus and another packet of PowerGel, we continued our climb. Kem Pacat is the last stop before the summit. The climb from here averages about 2 hours.

Thirty-minutes from Kem Pacat, my team leader Ong screamed "buey-tahan" due to debilitating leg cramps and stopped abruptly, leaving yours truly to continue climbing alone. He didn't really scream la, only soft grumbles of "aiyoh aiyoh" only. Climbing further, I reached these confusing signages which says "To Summit Trail Gunung Nuang" and "Puncak Pengasih".

I thought summit is near, time-check: 1056hrs at this point. Meaning the climb so far was 3hrs 26mins. The metal tent of the summit wasn't in sight, so naturally I followed the sign pointing left to Gunung Nuang's Summit Trail.

The first few minutes of trekking from the signages were flat, but thereafter the terrain was a steep downhill descend! Sensing something was wrong, I stopped twice to check the images from my digital camera taken from the signage. 20mins into trekking the descending track, I decided to climb back up. Maybe "Puncak Pengasih" was the summit, I thought! Then I saw Wong near the signage, obviously confused as well. I told him, "It's all downhill from here, no way this is the way to the summit!". And together we turned, only to find a Chinese uncle in his 50's telling me "All your effort was wasted. We need to descend a little to get to the summit! Didn't anybody tell you this?!". I later learned this fit uncle was Mr. T.S. Loh, the very fit guy that Jimbo mentioned earlier. And about 40mins later, we reached the summit!

With T.S. Loh, the ultra-fit uncle (he started his climb at 8am+)!

Time-check at summit: 1155hrs (4hrs 25mins from base)

Time lost due to track uncertainties: roughly 30mins. Means I could actually summit this notorious Gunung Nuang in less than 4hrs! Wow!

View from the summit - Genting Highland was obscured by thick mists.

The last can of 100Plus went down into the tummy with a bun and plenty of drinking water! After a 30mins rest at the summit, T.S. Loh decided to descend, and I followed suit. I admitted I hate descending a mountain, I prefer climbing! The journey down was uneventful, but took longer than climbing up due to yours truly taking his own sweet time dipping at the river and rinsing the dirts and muds off his Timberland boots! :-)

An exotic plant?

Nope, the photo above shows the foot-end of my walking stick which I found abandoned by previous climbers in the nearby bushes last minute just before the climb. That's the amount of thrashing and thrusting suffered by the stick. I'm not sure if those fancy-aluminum-retractable walking sticks are as good as this al-naturale wooden walking stick, but I prefer the latter.

This is part of Dr. James' SMS to me after the climb:

"... I heard you were first to summit. Well done. "

Yes, I AM the best!

They blogged about the climb too:
1. Jimbo
2. OYY

Langkawi Part 3: Hotel & Beach

2008-04-27T21:26:00.012+08:00

Holiday Villa Beach Resort & Spa

We paid RM1,200 for the AirAsia GoHoliday! package which included a 4D3N stay at Holiday Villa and return air tickets as well. We opted for Langkawi instead of Redang as snorkelling isn't her cup of tea! Sigh...

Main lobby

The interior is decent for a four-star hotel. The room was a bit of a let down though. Run down, with holes and patches of fungi on the leaking wall, ancient furnitures, and blocked bath tub.

The Room

The rooms are in dire need of an over-haul. We kept hearing tap water being turned on and off from the next room. She said, "Can hear next door one... I don't like it!".

Big-ass swimming pool

The plus side is that the hotel boasts to have the largest swimming pool in the whole Langkawi. It has a jacuzzi attached to the main pool, which was fun according to Her.

Walking across the pool will bring you to a walkway which gives you direct access to the beautiful beach. Numerous sunbeds are scattered all around, one can pull them far out into the shore too!

The beach is quieter compared to Pantai Cenang's, and if a quiet evening stroll along the beach is what you hope for, this is da place!

Unadulterated!

Dinner for two by the beach, which led to ...

Sunset

The package included daily American breakfasts at the hotel's Lagenda Restaurant. Food are basic at best - bread, croissants, bacons, eggs, porridge with condiments, baked beans, fried rice, mee hoon, sausages, hash browns, fruit juice, coffee and tea. Repeat daily.

The restaurant is packed every morning. Seeing that our breakfast expenses were taken care of, we made it a point to wake up before 8.30am every morning. But dunno why, everytime reach restaurant already 10am...

While having to wake up early and ingesting the same food over and over again dampens the spirit, experiencing the poor table service really screw one's psychological well-being. Due to the inherent geographical features in the Lagenda Restaurant, be sure to choose your table with care so as not to get infested with flies!

Finally, when it was time to leave, it rained cats and dogs. Here's a picture taken from the room's balcony on the morning of our departure:

... to be continued in Langkawi Part 4.

Langkawi Part 2: Car Rental

2008-04-25T12:52:00.003+08:00

The most efficient mode of transport on Langkawi Island is by driving a car, especially if you're staying far away from Kuah Town. This was what I've been told anyway, and I couldn't have agreed more. This brings on to the issue of car renting.

During off-season, car renting is actually quite affordable in Langkawi. Car and scooter rentals are available in the Langkawi Airport itself, and from the hotels, and scattered all around the island. Yours truly opted to rent a car from the airport itself. Bargain punya bargain, I finally clinched the deal with one Mr. Kanna(sai) manning the car rental counters in the arrival hall. His counter is at the right corner, so guys beware of this Kanna(sai).

Mr. Kanna(sai): Aiya, banyak murah la. Since lu gua punya first customer of the day, gua kasi lu RM140. Wira tau! Kaunter lain kasi Kancil je...

KK: Tak jadik la, skang off season. Kasi potong lagi itu harga...

Mr. Kanna(sai): *Turns to his accomplice* Beb, RM140 untuk Wira, tiga hari, lu kasi bilang mana mau carik...

Mr. Accomplice: Heh heh heh... *shake shake head* Dahla ada RM10 petrol dalam tank...

KK: RM130. Tekkid or leavid...

Mr. Kanna(sai): Okok, first customer punye pasai, 130 pon 130 la. Mai kasi sign sini... pastu lu gi pintu masuk utama amik kete. Wira PCQ 8683. Kawan gua antar sana. Gua nyer hp 019-5951280. Call gua anytime.

While waiting at the airport's main entrance, we were admiring the newish Toyota Corolla the other group had rented and regretted slightly for not renting a higher end car. "Wat the heck, we get the Wira at a bargain!", we thought. And we continued waiting, hoping for a brand new Wira Special Edition. When this Ah Beng-nified Wira zoomed past us and screeched to a halt a few metres away from us, our jaws dropped 30 cm simultaneously. The number plate read "PCQ 8683".

Silver 16" sports rims, modified grille, growling sports exhaust pipe, small-diameter-fake-sticky Momo steering wheel, stinko cushion seats. Mamamia, and faulty power windows. Tell me I tulan or not? Summore say got RM10 petrol, when we got in the empty tank light already lit. WTF?!

Pantai Kok

Feeling cheated, I drove the junk straight to the nearby Pantai Kok with the sole intention of drowning it. Who would have thought I would be so easily mesmerised by the modestly scenic ~~Cock Bitch~~ Kok Beach, and slowed down, and did something utterly unpredictable!

Din see dat coming dincha?!

Cam-whoring with the junk-metal! After clowning around with the junk, we'd decided its time has come, and it shall find eternity in the deep ocean for being so smelly and old. I then thrusted the gear stick into 1 position, floored the pedal, and steered the wheels towards the water. That piece of junk retaliated by rattling, grunting, moving sideways and finally spun itself 180 degree, looking for a way out of the beach!

That attracted the attention of two Life Guards (I later learnt they were actually locals passing by that area). They ran over and checked the junk-metal. I acted selamba (selamba = meaning as though nothing is happening in Malay).

Junk-metal had cleverly submerged its front wheels in the protective soft fine sand, rendering it immovable. Not only that, it transmitted S.O.S. signals to an Isuzu 4WD Squad requesting assistance from its impending death. Junk-metal had escaped from its death sentence!

Moral of the story is, never rent a car from Mr. Kanna(sai). If you're renting from other company, do rent a 4WD if you're planning to bring the car into the ocean.

P/s: While there are some fiction injected here and there in this post, do take note that doing business with Mr. Kanna is not advisable! More on this later (if I remember that is).

... to be continued in Langkawi Part 3.

Langkawi Part 1: Arrival

2008-04-25T01:03:00.009+08:00

Duty-free island

We touched down at Langkawi Airport on Monday noon. The journey from LCCT took less than an hour. After collecting our checked luggage, we proceeded to rent a manual transmission Wira at a bargain - RM130 for 3 days. Bargain because the lowest price the other counters offered was RM140 for a brand new Kancil.

The Super Ah Beng Wira

We learnt the hard way that cheaper is not always better in terms of car renting in Langkawi. More on this later. With the help of the free maps from the airport, we drove up to Holiday Villa Beach Resort & Spa at Pantai Tengah, our accommodation for the next 3 days.

Holiday Villa Beach Resort & Spa, Langkawi

... to be continued in Langkawi Part 2.

Progress Photos

2008-04-17T16:49:00.004+08:00

Warning! This post contains grotesque photos of semi-naked male bodies. Viewer's discretion is advised! Click on "[+]Read More..." to proceed!

These photos are freshly taken this morning post-workout at the gym. The hunk on the right is Mr. Fel.

We made a trip to Egonutrition, and spent a fortune (collectively) on supplements. Mr. Fel bought ON's Whey, Mr. Seng bought BSN's N.O.-Xplode. And I'm stacking my Nitrotech with Axis Lab's Creatine Ethyl Ester capsules. Whooooaarrgghhhh...!

Nitrotech

2008-04-09T13:57:00.004+08:00

My gym weapon for now - Nitrotech + Lipo6

The shift from ON's 100% Whey to Muscletech's Nitrotech Hardcore see a tremendous energy boost and increase in fatigue threshold! The presence of a crazy gym partner a.k.a. spotter, Mr. Seng, makes daily gym training a hardcore experience. If not for the caffeine and yohimbine-containing Lipo-6, I would've stacked Muscletech's NanoVapor (nitric oxide + creatine). Bring it on!

Medical Grads Found Doping!

2008-04-05T17:22:00.005+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR, April 5: Three medical graduates who are currently unemployed were found by a strict fitness instructor at a local gym to be taking explicit drugs containing the sex-enhancing drug Yohimbine, bronchodilator Theophylline, compounds containing Adrenaline, and guggulsterones, among others.

Leading the pack of drug users is Mr. Felix (name changed to maintain anonymity), who is taking Ergopharm's Ergolean AMP v.2 (AMP2). It is purportedly to be the most effective thermogenics in the market, with rave reviews in many online forums. No wonder Mr. Felix was hooked instantaneously.

Refusing to lose out, Mr. Seng (again, real name withheld) got himself America's most powerful cutting capsule, the Muscletech's Hydroxycut Hardcore. This Hydroxycut comes in liquid capsules like the rest, and can ignite internal inferno. On his first day doping the Cut, Mr. Seng was already benching 80kg of weight!

Wanting to be known only as "Mad-K", he got himself a bottle of the infamous Nutrex's Lipo-6, which is no doubt a molotov cocktail disguised in capsules. It contains Yohimbine, which is able to make every part of the body rock-hard! Mad-K is on his way into the Mr. Universe arena, and is planning to make a trip to Langkawi to tan his rocky body end of this month.

Attempts to notify the Ministry of Health was in vain because the Malaysian hotline was never working. When the university's Dean of Medicine was contacted, he could only shake his head and sob in deep remorse. "Medical grads nowadays...", said he, profusely shaking his head. - ROITERS/BERNEMA.

Graduation Dinner

2008-03-20T18:40:00.005+08:00

Our graduation dinner was held at the Impiana KLCC Hotel & Spa on March 13.

Doctors in black.

With the ladies.

The guy in the centre is our taiko.

Convocation is on May 24, so see you guys then!

The end is the beginning is the end...

2008-02-28T21:49:00.003+08:00

I'd finally survived a spontaneous vertex delivery from medical school on Feb 28, 2008! No meconium aspiration in the process, it was a clear pass. No resuscitation required. Am receiving my birth cert called MBBS in May, with my surname "Doctor" imprinted on it! Aahhh... the air is so refreshing...

With my mates

Kumpulan Kongsi Gelap Anti-Sosial

With my group study members, "Kumpulan Gagak Hitam"

Thai Food Treat at Chok Dee

2008-01-31T23:20:00.000+08:00

Our friendly training buddies from Rambo Gym, Michael and Tong, gave me and Felix a dinner treat at Chok Dee Thai Restaurant last night, seeing it's our last week in Batu Pahat. Speak about hospitality!

Tom yam soup with seafood

The food was great! We ordered a variety of dishes, which I wished I had snapped some pictures of. They look good and tasted good. The company was awesome, too, the friendly Batu Pahat folks!

Roasted pork!

I dedicate the photo of the roasted pork above specially to my friend, Hady. He likes pork and sometimes acts a bit porky, but his religious commitment makes him refraining from indulging in pork. That's just too bad coz the roasted pork was really nice, tender, lean, succulent... and comes with a special dipping sauce!

Dipping sauce for roasted pork

Not only did they foot the bill, Michael also served us the soup and made sure we tried all the dishes on the table by getting the dishes on our plates, before his children's. That's top notch hospitality!

L-R: Tong, Michael's son, yours truly, Michael's daughter, Michael's wifey, Michael, ~~Michael's eldest son~~ Felix

Tong then drove us around town after dinner, showing us his house, Michael's house, Chua Soi Lek's house, some mafia's house, golf clubs, churches, bungalows, and then headed towards the outskirts of the town to Senggarang. He nearly drove us all the way to Rengit. He blabbered non-stop in the car. We had a 2-hour sight-seeing in the dark, as Felix aptly puts it.

This is one helluva experience I'm sure I wouldn't get if we were to be posted anywhere in KL, or any part of the country for that matter.

Dent fixed, finally!

2008-01-24T15:52:00.000+08:00

I blogged about a road retard who dented my car back in September 2006. I still have no clue as to who that retard was, as my car was parked stationary while I was away jogging at the park. My guess was that retard caressed my car's right buttcheek with her car's front bumper while reversing out of the parking lot.

September 2006

I've been wanting to fix the dent for a long long time. I sent it to my mechanic friend right after the incident, but his workload was high at that time and I didn't wanna waste a few hours waiting there to get the small dent fixed. He arranged for another day but I procrastinated...

Fast forward 1 year and 4 months later, I finally got my (car's) dented buttcheek fixed! Right here in Batu Pahat. The uncle is a friend of Bo Ren. Here are some photos of the uncle whacking my car with his tool of trade - a metal rod!

He took his own sweet time whacking my car with his metal rod, which looked like a metal ruler to me. He appeared to enjoy whacking my car, seeing that he juts his tongue out, twist his head a little, and wiggle his tongue, and close his eyes a little... I'd say he enjoyed the noise of whacking a Milo tin. After a while, he reached for a bloody hammer, and there he went whacking my car again!

When I say whack, I do really mean w-h-a-c-k! Look at the distance between the hammer and my car's sexy arse-cheek!

January 2008

It takes some whacking to fix a car's external injury, how ironic. The car got bumped by someone, and you send it to get whacked somemore. Wtf man?! Don't the car have feelings?!!

Saturday Nite Dinner For Two

2008-01-12T22:50:00.000+08:00

[UPDATED!]

We planned to have a lovey-dovey self-cooked dinner this Saturday nite, so after watching National Treasure 2 earlier, we headed to Jusco Mid Valley to get some raw material. The movie was great by the way (what the hell was on page 47??!).

The lamb steak was a little obese, so I decided to perform some lipo-section (fat reduction) with a kitchen knife. I agree a surgical scalpel would have been ideal. Here's the end result:

Then it was marinating time. I'm no expert in this, but as the Parisian chef Auguste Gusteau of Ratatouille puts it, "Everyone can cook!". So what the heck if I can't beat Tony Roma's world famous ribs! LOL!

The usual suspects.

So how did I do it? After cleaning the meat under running water and dabbing them dry, I spread chockful of black pepper powder to dehydrate those fat meat. Then I douse them with olive oil, and flood 'em meat with a bottle of worchester sauce, before embalming them in the thick honey hickory bbq sauce.

The soon gonna be mummified cow and lamb.

They are then wrapped in "Clean Wraps" and chucked into the freezer for the next 36 hours. On why I marinate the meat so early, that's because we are catching Warlords tomorrow night, and thus gonna eat out.

I wonder how those meats are gonna taste like come Saturday. Keeping my fingers and toes crossed. I'm in charge of the carnivorous section while she'll handle the herbivorous department. Will update after Saturday's dinner over a glass of red wine...

Updated 12.01.2008 @ 2030 hrs:

KK's Specialty Combo Steak for two!

Combo steak consisting of beef and lamb steaks, shrimps, veggies, and seafood chowder soup! And sparkling red wine too!

The steaks were pan-fried to medium-rare with olive oil. The lamb steak was tastier according to her, which I totally agree despite the higher fat content! Guilty, guilty!

Close-up!

I liked our dinner! I think I just pawned Tony Romas, TGIF, and Chilis! Maybe not. LOL!

True Fitness @ Jaya33

2008-01-11T00:10:00.000+08:00

I must say this is the best gym I've been to so far... super spacious with advanced machines and nice + ample free weights, with minimal grunting homosapiens (and nil homosexuals, too!). Plus an open air swimming pool on the top floor of the building!

The lockers

This is the only corporate gym that does not do corporate rate, hence the low number of members. The last time I checked, basic membership fee was RM175++ per month, easily the most expensive gym out there. Even yesterday (Maal Hijrah holiday), the gym was quite deserted in the morning.

Adequately sized locker

Changing area

Urinals, commodes, and basins

Doorless shower area, beware Mr. Anus!

Steam room and sauna

Cardio machines

More cardio machines

Free weights

More free weights

Resistant machines

More resistant machines and more cardio machines

Ditto

The open-air swimming pool

Subway Club sandwitch (turkey ham + chicken ham + roasted beef + 6" long honey oat bun + all available veggie topping + extra extra extra BBQ sauce + mustard sauce = RM11.50)

Subway is just 10 steps away from the main entrance of True Fitness. What a great post-workout meal! If you're rich and don't mind the PJ traffic and spending RM200 per month is like nothing to you, TF @ Jaya33 is the gym you want to be in!

Buurrrpps!

GNC vs O.N.

2008-01-06T22:14:00.000+08:00

Back in November last year, I blogged about this GNC offer which allowed me to get the GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein (6 Lbs) for half the price at RM174.00 per tub. One and a half month down the road, my tub of GNC whey reaches the bottom. And I bought a new tub yesterday!

This time it's Optimum Nutrition's 100% Whey (5 Lbs). Got it for RM200.00 from a fellow gym buddy. Many people have recommended O.N. Here's the comparison chart:

Nutrition facts for both products (click to enlarge).

GNC does make people FAT! Here's why: a single scoop of GNC has 31g of powder, compared to O.N.'s 32g. Bearing in mind the 1g deficit, GNC packs 66% more in total fat content, 200% more saturated fat, 33% more cholesterol, and 25% more in total carbs compared to O.N.'s whey! And if that's not enough to eternally banish GNC from your gym workout buying list, it also pack about 17% less PROTEIN! Unforgiveable! No wonder GNC so generous, give "Buy 1 Free 1" promotion. Yucks, I can smell lard on my body already...

Tag + Omega

2008-01-01T11:01:00.001+08:00

Some people yearn for a Tag Heuer Carrera...

while some dream of the Omega Seamaster...

Greedy ones wish for both...

... and lucky ones (like yours truly) have BOTH as Christmas gift! From my dearest Santarina...

The Omega Seamaster:

Tag Heuer Carrera:

Here are a few combination photos for your green-eyeing pleasure (LOL!):

And so it is four for now...

and still counting!

"Secret Santa" Christmas Party

2007-12-27T19:59:00.000+08:00

We had a "Secret Santa" Christmas party at Boren's place last nite. Click on the image above for the description on what "Secret Santa" is all about.

The food was ~~mediocre at best, nothing to shout about~~ appropriate for the amount of money we paid, which was RM10 per person. All food was supposed to be halal to cater for our Muslim batch mates, but some non-halal stuff kicked in later due to inadequate food spiced up the tempo a little. LOL! I'm sure our Muslim friends wouldn't mind.

I did not join in the secret santa thingy, as I was lazy to go buy present for someone. Am too old for this, haha! It was nice to have batchmate gathering like this. Totally enjoyed the company. Despite the host protesting frustratingly, I think the short drizzle made everyone comfortable and relaxed.

The hosts bought a cake as a surprise for birthday boy Soon Han. It was amusing to see a lot of people fumbling when singing the birthday song, pausing after "... happy birthday to... ??". Yours truly included! Haha.

"The secretary" presenting Chocolate Indulgence to birthday boy

Group photo

Most people went back after 10.00pm, and missed out the fun. For those who stayed put, we had a helluva red wine binging session. Thanks to Kar Seng who like to gulp rather than sip.

We bought 11 bottles of red wine, and there were about 11 of us. I lost count of the bottles of red wine consumed after 6 bottles. Thanks to the card game devised by Kar Seng.

Very soon, many of us became disinhibited, rowdy, and some became precociously horny (hehehe). I'll let the photos do the talking...

I was drunk, no doubt about it. Siu Min drove us home. And I ~~slept till 12pm today~~ woke up at 6am to go to the ward and covered all my patients, then attended the CME in the afternoon before going to the gym in the evening. I did not vomit, I'm strong!

p/s: The second last sentence is bullshit, in case you have an olfactory disorder... LOL!

My Fitness Gym

2007-12-24T23:05:00.001+08:00

This gym is like the best-kept secret in town... nested on the fourth floor of Endah Parade (Carrefour Sri Petaling) for more than a year now, My Fitness is indeed... unheard of! Who would venture anywhere above the second floor of Endah Parade???

So the rat goes to this new-found gym, of course for free with this 1-week free trial pass. Thanks to the long Haji plus Christmas holiday! Have been thrashing iron daily since last Thursday...

The lockers

My Fitness gym consists of two floors; lower floor is the gym itself with all the weights and machines, while second floor houses the food & juice bar, yoga room, spa, and changing rooms with shower and sauna.

The lockers are a bit on the anorexic side.

Do guys actually sit down and blow their hair? So gay!

Cardio machines.

The cardio machines are impressive in terms of quantity, quality and variety. Each machine comes with its own dedicated LCD screen that display up to 5 different Astro channels!

The resistant machines are equally good and complete too! The equipments are top-notch! Very well-maintained even after more than 1-year old (either that or they are lacking members working out).

Resistant machines.

And here comes the free-weight area. Again, equipments are of good quality and rather complete. Impressive for a Malaysian-owned gym! Totally comparable to other corporate mega-gyms like ~~Fagness~~ Fitness First and California Fitness.

This gym advocates Weider and Horleys product, which I think are crap. Membership fees is about RM105 per month. I was able to work out comfortably and hog the machines and weights to myself during my five days there, as the number of members is on the low side (I think!). Here's the location map, flicked from the gym's website. Modified it a little to include IMU Bukit Jalil campus:

Winter Solstice Festival

2007-12-22T17:36:00.000+08:00

"Tang yuan"

December 22, according to the western calendar is the shortest day of the year. This winter day and others close to it are marked by many cultural observances around the world. Universally, the Winter Solstice was regarded as the beginning of the annual reawakening of nature. Days would grow longer and the nights shorter. For the Chinese, the Winter Solstice celebrated the beginning of the triumph of Yang over Yin (??!! LOL!). It was their holiday to celebrate near Christmas.

Having "tang yuan" (glutinous rice dumpling balls in broth) is one of the signature ritual for celebrating "Dong Zhi" (Winter Solstice Festival). Tang stands for reunion and yuan means round or complete. Am going over to my gramps for a reunion dinner of sort soon! Will post some photos if I'm not too lazy!

The scene at gramps - 2 tables with numerous dishes!

Community Project

2007-12-20T22:41:00.000+08:00

Spent the past weekend at Kampung Parit Sulong, Batu Pahat as part of our final semester Community Project. We were to conquer a religious school and turn it into a health screening base for the village folks - for free! And yet only 100 odd people turned up. Well maybe next time we'll have to invade each and every kampung houses, just to be holistic.

Sekolah Agama Seri Maimon @ Parit Sulong

The project consisted of stations that measure blood sugar, blood cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index, visual test, dental check-up, prostate and breast examination, and Pap smear. For the kids, there were de-worming pills too. There were also health talks on dengue, breast and cervical cancer, etc. I was in charge of the health exhibition on diabetes mellitus.

Clowning around, getting my blood pressure checked before the health screening starts

My job was rather simple, those who were found to have deranged blood sugar levels would be sent to the exhibition site so that I would repeat myself again and again on "banyakkan exercise tiga sampai lima kali seminggu, 20 hingga 30 minit setiap kali, dan kurangkan gula, garam, lemak, banyakkan makanan berserat tinggi seperti sayur-sayuran dan buah-buahan, supaya gula dalam darah terkawal dan tidak mendapat kesan-kesan buruk seperti angin ahmar, serangan sakit jantung, rosak buah pinggang, buta, kaki kena potong... ... ..."

This is how the station I'm in-charge with looks like...

After the screening program, there was this Projek Keluarga Angkat (Foster Family Project) whereby we were put into groups of threes and assigned to a house to spend the night with total strangers. IMU wants us to taste the kampung life...

My keluarga angkat

We were then brought to our rumah angkat (which is huge), dump our stuffs into our bedrooms and headed out to the school hall again for the Indoor Games with the villagers.

Three-legged race

After the games, we went back to our foster family. Had a nice cold shower, and clowned around the house, checking out every nook and corner while waiting for our bapak and emak angkat to finish their prayers.

My bed for the night... having it all by myself! Hahahaha...

Me and my ibu angkat

Us on the dining table with ikan masak asam pedas, prawns with curry and garlic, and veggies.

Me and the gossip queen, Missy Shahira.

Then there was the Malam Budaya after dinner. Will try to get some photos and post them up here soon. The next day was gotong-royong day. We were assigned to groups responsible to paint the balai raya, plant 100 banana trees, and cleaning up the school hall.

Tanam pokok pisang.

Cleaning up school hall.

Scraping and painting the balai raya.

Lastly, it was the closing ceremony. I was assigned to hand over a souvenir in the form of a framed photo of the three of us with our foster family on stage.

And here are some group photos...

GC Black Ion-Plated Watch

2007-12-09T23:41:00.000+08:00

Nice watch there aye?! Polished steel case with black ionic-plated bezel and bracelet, with a carbon fibre dial. Gives you the sporty, racy, F1-inspired accessory for the wrist! Don'tcha wish you had one for Christmas? Zoom in and have a closer look:
If the above sourced-from-the-internet images means nothing to you, let's have a look at a few live photos...

Ooopss, did I forget to mention that I got this as an early Christmas present cum graduation present from my sis? Well I just did! Hehe...

Collecting watches has been my hobby since secondary school. Back then I started with cheap analog watches like Alba, Elba, Saiko, Quartz and the likes. Then I switched to digital watches as the Casio G-Shock craze infected Malaysia. I owned one generic Casio Illuminator and two bulky Casio G-Shocks, which didn't come cheap at all - RM200 to 400 per piece!

Very soon my pocket money got depleted dry and I found collecting watches is an expensive hobby, and switched to collecting stamps instead. Let's not go into that!

Until I received this present last Saturday, my fire was reignited! I'm gonna collect watches again! And my favourite watches this time round would be the chronographs, preferably with metal bracelets rather than leather/rubber straps!

I'm currently the proud owner of three watches... a rugged G-Shock for daily use, a Swatch Irony Chronograph which has been with me for 3 years now, and my new Guess Collection watch.

Coming up next: Tag Heuer, Omega, Hamilton, Tissot, Breitling, Oris, Maurice Lacroix, Rolex, dreaming on... dreaming on... dreaming on...

Swatch Irony Chrono

2007-12-09T02:00:00.000+08:00

Here are some photos of my first chrono, which is already 3+ years old if memory serves me right. Just for records sake, as I'm sure I'm gonna have more chronos coming! Hehehe...

With my second chrono, the GC Black Ion-Plated.

Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2007

2007-12-02T14:30:00.000+08:00

The journey to my debut marathon started Friday morning with a crappy bus trip from Batu Pahat. The bus was supposed to send us to Lavender Street, but all four of us got dumped at the Singapore check-point coz the immigration clearance was too long. Mark that bus company, it's called Hasry! Blardy idiot.

We booked a room for 2 night's stay for four at this marvelous B&B called Summer Tavern at Clarke Quay. The room is air-conditioned, and the owner Mr. Khalil charged us S$120.00 per night. Very affordable, considering it's location which is right next to Boat Quay and Clarke Quay. And most importantly it's just a 10minute's walk to the marathon starting point. The night life... oooh ma ma! Should Dr. Ray had contacted me earlier, he wouldn't have to be all alone bunking in a cheap motel at Chinatown on a Friday night. LOL!

The guys went jalan-jalan around Marina Bay while I met up with my uncle in Bedok, who was kind enough to collect our running packs. I was treated to dinner at Coffee Club at Siglap Road. Great food but no pictures, heheh! After dinner, met up with the guys and we went Clinic!

Located at Clarke Quay, Clinic has wheelchairs, IV drips, IM injections, ward blinds, operating tables, operating lights, morque chiller, sexy nurses etc. etc. A bunch of innocent med students are sure to inherently attracted to this kind of set-up. Haha! We ordered a jug of beer sans the IV drips, for slow-release action via oral route.

Clarke Quay was quite happening that night. Right in front of Clinic, we witnessed an ang moh collapse and banged his head on the pavement, rendering him unconscious. Instantaneously, we heard a number of apparently educated Singaporean shouting, "he's got epilepsy", and turned him to a right-lateral position. Another came and said, "he's got head injury", and turned the patient back supine and wrapped a piece of cloth to the ang moh's bleeding bald head. Another tried to wake him up by slapping on his cheek. Some security personnel tried to beam intense white LED torch into his pupil from 1 metre away, I suppose he's looking for unequal pupil size. While all that was happening, the four medically-trained youngsters, yours truly included, were sipping beer on wheelchairs. Go on, scrutinize us on medical ethics! Oh ya, then some security fellas were heard shouting "FCUK YIU" to another ang moh, apparently the victims's friend. Then the police came. We then adjourned to the central stage nearby and listened to some energetic Irish performance by Touch of Tartan. What a night! I love Singapore already!

We woke up pretty late the next day, and I met up with my relatives at Paramount Hotel (opp. Parkway Parade) for lunch. The Chinese restaurant has dim sum and Japanese food, what a combo! We had loads of dim sum, and some sushi and fresh raw salmon! Burpps! Met up with the guys after that at Harbourfront for a trip to Sentosa.

Besides the Luge ride, I think the trip to Sentosa is crappy, time- and cash-wasting. What are four grown-up mahlat-lou's doing watching dolphin show? Suffice to say, we spent the rest of our day (and cash) there and returned to Vivo City for dinner at this Greenhouse Cafe. Nothing marvelous. Let's go on to the marathon!

First and foremost, thanks to LM who provided me a two-stage turbo boost by means of 2 packets of GU gels. I topped up another 2 GU gels, 2 packets of GU2O sports drink, and 2 PowerBars. The running pack comes with a blue gym bag, a blue sling bag, an Adidas singlet, and some Berocca tablets and Deep Heating Rub sachets. And a packet of pasta too, wtf?! LOL!

The provided Adidas running singlet could easily cost RM40-60 over here in Malaysia. I was wearing a similar singlet, only white in colour sans the Standard Chartered logo.

L-R: KK, Zhang Duan, Siu Min

I woke up at 3am sharp, and immediately chewed on the awful tasting PowerBar complemented with the GU2O drink. I then prep my bowel by straining in the toilet. From then on it was stretching all the way till starting time.

L-R: Daniel, KK, Siu Min, Zhang Duan

L-R: Kok Fang, KK, Siu Min, Daniel, Zhang Duan

All five of us started from Pen 3, designated for those aiming for sub-5hr timing. I picked Zhang Duan and Daniel as my pacers as they have trained at least a little compared to the other two fellas. But Daniel scrammed off the first few metres looking for a loo. That left me and Zhang Duan pacing each other at a very much steady, constant and "slowish" pace for the first 10km. I stopped for a 2-min pee at Raffles Ave before catching up with him further down the road. That's pretty much it really, we chatted a little, ran a little, and zig-zagged a little to pass the slower runners. Our aim was to finish our first marathon, and not develop nasty leg cramps.

Upon entering the ECP stretch from Mountbatten Road, Zhang Duan started to increase his pace. He might be frustrated with my slowish pace, but I needed to conserve energy for the last 10km. I found him running further and further away from me and the need to catch up with him. I could run ahead of him but I didn't, I tailed him from a slight distance, my speed constant. I let him set the pace. Until the 33km mark, Zhang Duan signalled me the sign of death - he asked me to run on, his cramps debilitating. I gave him a thumbs-up (as encouragement) and sped on. Gulped my 5th GU gel at 36km, and discovered I could possibly gun it for a sub-5hr timing. Due to the GU gel's turbo lag, I found myself walking a few metres every km thereafter, until the 39km mark. Cheered by Eric Clapton's "RUN" emanating from my MP3 player's earpiece, and the late onset turbo boost from the GU gel consumed earlier, I ran the final 2km non-stop. Not even for water or deep heating rubs. I needed the sub-5! Wishful, wishful thinking! Hahaha...

My champion chip clocked:
5h:04m:35s

We had to wait for our friend Mr. Kok Fang, who jovially finished his marathon in 8h:14m:5s. He vowed not to run another marathon ever again. Understandable, with his lack of training and improper shoewear, and a post-marathon Singapore trishaw ride back to Summer Tavern that cost him S$30.00, we felt his pain too!

We travelled back to Batu Pahat via Larkin bus terminal in JB, how tiring! Luckily the sumptuous dinner made up for the energy-sapping travelling.

I have only praises for Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, and would definitely join next year's event and thrash Uncle Ray's time. Hahaha. Oh yea guys, I might be joining OSIM Triathlon relay next year too! Hiak hiak hiak...

Damn the Marathon-Photos.com people!!! They didn't take my photo! Arrgghhh...

Funny Video of Terrorists

2007-11-28T20:31:00.000+08:00

Barbell Deadlift

2007-11-28T11:02:00.000+08:00

Supplemented my back exercise regime with barbell deadlift in the gym on Monday. Last set was 70kg of 6 reps until my grip gave way. Am still having lower back muscle sore today! I like the feeling of having the sore of muscles well-trained. Ahhh...

GU vs. PowerGel

2007-11-23T23:48:00.000+08:00

Read on for the comparison between GU gel and PowerGel! Sourced from BeginnerTriathlete.com.

GU (www.gusports.com)
Flavors Available:	Banana Blitz, Chocolate, Espresso Love (w\double-caffeine), Just Plain, Orange Burst, Tri Berry, and Vanilla Bean.
Cosmo Factor:	A nicely unassuming mix of homespun and hi-tech.
These are my favorite gels because they do everything well and most of the flavors are quite good. All versions have some caffeine and they now offer Espresso Love, which has twice the caffeine. GU is not available in every sporting goods store, but can be easily found (especially at bike shops). If you return five empty packets, they will send you a free one. GU is sold in single serving packets and five serving Flask Filler packets.
Category Score Notes
Taste		Natural, not overly sweet. Chocolate flavor could use some help. Favorite flavor: Vanilla Bean – just like pudding (did not taste Espresso Love).
Consistency		Thick, but not heavy
Initial Boost		Takes a moment to get there, but it’s like a shot of adrenaline when it arrives.
Sustained Boost		Long lasting with no hard crash.
Overall		Good results and a variety of tasty flavors.

PowerGel (www.powerbar.com )
Flavors Available:	Chocolate (w\caffeine), Green Apple (w\caffeine), Lemon Lime, Raspberry Cream, Strawberry Banana (w\caffeine), Tangerine (w\double-caffeine), and Tropical Fruit.
Cosmo Factor:	Attempts to be flashy and modern, but ends up being, well, kind of ugly (on the bright side, they’re really easy to spot from a long distance).
PowerGel is the easiest product to find of the bunch. In fact, many races I’ve been to offer them at aid stations. Anyone who’s tasted a PowerBar knows that the company puts more emphasis on performance than flavor and PowerGel is no exception. The packets were the biggest of those tested, which could make it hard to take quickly. They also offer the most calories per serving, which aids the overall boost. PowerGel is sold only in individual packets. For some reason, the packets occasionally can be hard to tear open.
Category Score Notes
Taste		Light, slightly metallic, and generally not great. Favorite flavor: Tropical Fruit – think pineapple on a sunny beach (did not taste Strawberry Kiwi).
Consistency		Thick, but easily swallowed.
Initial Boost		Understated, no big spike.
Sustained Boost		Kept feeling strong.
Overall		A solid all around performer but taste should be better.

He said Dua, I say Diu!

2007-11-22T13:18:00.000+08:00

The ~~godfather of medicine~~ Health Minister, Latok Chua announced yesterday that newly graduated medical doctors will have to undergo TWO years of ~~hell-holeship~~ housemanship compared to the previous one year! What pissed my willy off is that the salary will still be the same for the entire 2 years.

Today's paper said that those bargers will seek to promote doctors to the U43 Grade only AFTER housemanship. You and I know what "will seek" means in Malaysian context! In other words, for the first 2 years of fresh graduates' life, we need to eat shit to survive. They claimed the consolation for prolonging the housemanship for another year is that we can enjoy a RM500 pay raise (upon approval of "will seek") and be allowed to pursue further studies right after housemanship. Be realistic lah, we often hear stories in the past that people got into a postgrad program as early as during HO (the rule was 3 yrs after completing houseman). Why still need to "will seek this" and "will seek that" when you have confirmed the duration of housemanship? Just blardy confirm the salary lah! We are ready to give and take if the deal is right, don't make it so arbitrary ok latok?!

Footnote: Sigh... there goes my 4-year plan of replacing Latok Chua! Niamah...

Trip Down South

2007-11-18T13:48:00.000+08:00

The last time I went Singapore was almost four years ago, according to my now expired Restricted Passport. That was before they legalise nicotine chewing gum, LOL! Anyway, a burning question for you guys (especially for the intergalactic extraterrestrial currently parasiting a state city down south): is the ultra-modern EZ-Link card still being used for public trasportation? Or has Singapore moved on with scanners that can detect stored credits in brain implants? Please enlighten. I don't wanna make a fool out of myself holding an EZ-Link card and waving frantically in search for the card scanner aboard SBS buses. LOL!

Two more weeks to go... sigh!

Sony NWZ-S616F/P

2007-11-16T22:33:00.000+08:00

Say Bye to iPod Nano Video, and Hi to the latest Sony video mp3 player. I got a girly-pink one! Hmm, can hear someone insulting my machoism edy... LOL!

It is an mp3 player...

... with nice design, unlike the overly wide iPod Nano Video...

... it plays video ...

... and is good at it too (the photos here didn't do justice to the great vid quality)...

... it also serves as a photo album (again, it displays great pics)...

What more can one ask for Christmas present?! Girly PINK (it's wrapped in Sony's silicone case priced at RM69), 4Gb of flash memory, 33hrs of usage per charge. This little gizmo costs me RM599.00, and it's for my darling who's gonna fly to Phillippines come X'mas, sans yours truly... Isk! Isk! Imagine 4Gb of TVB series on the plane... who needs a boyfriend nowadays?!! Damn Sony!

GNC Deal

2007-11-13T00:02:00.000+08:00

I chanced upon this mystyle mobile voucher-on-demand when I visited the GNC store in Jaya 33 shopping mall last month. The GNC cashier passed me a mystyle booklet with info on discounts and promotions for a variety of brands, merchants and diners.

One of the deals is this "Buy 1 Free 1" voucher which enable the holder to buy any two GNC products for the price of one! What a gym-rat and a self-proclaimed health freak to do when confronted with such a fat deal? *thud thump* Two fat tubs of GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein (6 lbs each) suddenly appeared on my desk... with an almost instantaneous wallet shrinkage worth RM348.00! Normal retail price for one tub is RM348.00, so with the mystyle voucher, I paid RM174.00 for a tub of 6 lbs of whey protein!
The voucher is limited to one mobile number (applicable to all mobile service provider) once a year. The SMS sent will be charged RM3.50. Head over to mystyle website for the latest promotions and new merchants!

Disclaimer: I'm using my 2nd (prepaid) mobile number for this voucher thingy, just in case it's a scam that's gonna leech money via mobile phones. Will update if something goes wrong, but in the meantime all's well! :)

Kuey Chap

2007-11-12T15:37:00.001+08:00

I was hunting for food after my gym workout last Wednesday. There wasn't much choice around Rambo Gym, as the Swee Bee Chicken Rice Shop was closed. As I was rushing for my bus journey back to KL, I ended up ordering a bowl of kuey chap from Restoran Soon Lai, which is directly below Rambo Gym.

Kuey chap is a Teochew dish of flat, broad rice sheets in a soup made with dark soy sauce, served with pig offal, braised duck meat, various kinds of beancurd, preserved salted vegetables, and braised hard-boiled eggs. I opted for beancurd and two braised hard-boiled eggs. They came up to a total of RM3.50, if memory serves me right. They are nothing to shout about, MSG-laden, but a cheap and good source of quick-food!

Rambo Gym

2007-11-12T13:48:00.001+08:00

What does a gym rat does when he moves to a new place? Look for a new gym lor... And Batu Pahat doesn't disappoint! In the middle of the town where pre-war buildings are scattered among dizzifying and seemingly erratic one-way streets, one of them houses the Rambo Gym!

This gym was recommended by one of my recently graduated seniors, who was a hardcore gym rat himself. I joined this gym in September, as soon as I moved over to Batu Pahat. Back then my body was totally out of shape (think inverted "V"). Two months down the line, my body is... not much difference lar (LOL! modesty... modesty...).

Rambo Gym is the old-school type of gym, no fuss, just heaps of free-weights and muscular Ah Peks (and Ah Bengs) with minimal weight-machines. The guys are friendly too, as with all Batu Pahat inhabitants.

The gym members here are really friendly. I've got to know two of the veteran bodybuilders quite well, and received quite a few invaluable pointers from them too! One even offered me his RM10,000 mountain bike so that I can join his gang for mountain-biking! Speak about hospitality!

Rambo Gym used to be the head office of Persatuan Bina Badan Batu Pahat (Batu Pahat Body Building Association), which is currently a defunct association coz no one pays the association fees (according to the gym keeper Mr. Soh).

Working out here is a great experience, with it's conducive environment and the friendly regular muscular kakis. It's affordable too! Registration fee for first timers is RM30, and the rate for students are RM40 per month, while adults pay RM60 per month. I'm paying the student rate, of course. This is definitely better than the UAV Gym and Family Gym, the two gyms I used to frequent when I was in Seremban.

It is worthy to note that the recently crowned Mr. Universe, Mr. Sazali, used to train in Rambo Gym too! He was in the gym during the Raya break, but unfortunately I missed the opportunity to cam-whore with him as I was back home in KL.

Finally, a short message from the Rambo Gym's janitor:

Operating hours:
Mondays to Saturdays, 2.00pm to 10.00pm (Closed on public holidays).

Address:
Will update soon!

Fuel price hike! WTF??!

2007-11-05T02:04:00.000+08:00

According to paultan.org, the government is ~~studying on the possibility of~~ finding reasons to increase the fuel price yet again, and they're going to implement it real soon too! When are they gonna increase Malaysian doctor's salary gddmit!!

Note to self: No more driving back from BP to KL!

Curbside.MD

2007-11-01T15:55:00.000+08:00

This is a new search engine for EBM. In contrast to the other search engines which require the old school way of using keywords, Curbside.MD provides evidence-based answers to real medical questions! Forget the keywords, ask a question like you would ask a medical expert. Enter patient’s info, diseases, drugs, even paragraphs of information. The more the better. This is because Curbside.MD uses a technology called semantic fingerprinting, which essentially works quite similarly to geocoding.

Click here to read more on how it works, or go to the main page to start searching!

Marathon Preparation

2007-10-23T21:47:00.000+08:00

"W ith about a month to go until marathon day, it's time for one last long run and some well earned rest and don't be tempted to do anything that might undo all your good work..."

Beg your pardon?! What good work? What well earned rest? I haven't been training since my final exam in August! When I do run, they are only casual jogs around the hell hole called Batu Pahat. I can't find a route long enough for training, and the lake garden where Batu Pahat people jog tires the brain before the legs feel anything! A lap of running around the lake is only a few hundred metres, by the time I reach 10 laps, I was dizzified. And don't get me started on the traffic condition here.

Someone once told me the 42-odd km distance of the marathon must be respected and deserves adequate preparation in order to successfully finish. Seasoned runners often plan one year ahead before the big event! I think I might just survive through my debut marathon. My goal is to finish. It's a marathon and not a race afterall...

Asian International Motorcycle Expo 2007

2007-10-20T02:09:00.000+08:00

Asian International Motorcycle Expo 2007 (AIME '07) is held in conjunction with the "Visit Malaysia 2007". It is going to be an annual affair taking place around the dates of Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang. This year's AIME is held from Oct 18-21 at Hall 1 of KL Convention Centre (KLCC).

The entrance fee is RM10.00 for adults, and if you bring along a camera, you'll be charged an extra RM5.00. But was I disappointed! RM15.00 is a total rip off! It takes less than 30mins to view all the motorcycles in the hall. There weren't many, I don't think there were 50 bikes being displayed!

The catchy adverts say you could meet personalities like Matt Hotch (USA Custom Bike Champion), Kenji Nagai (2006 AMD All Japan Custom Bike Champion), Takeshi Shigematsu (AHDRA Top Fuel Champion), Brett SMith (S&S President), Chicara Nagata (2006 World AMD Custom Bike Champion), Chica (USA Custom Bike Champion), Russell Mitchell (President of Exile Cycles), and Keiji Kawakita (2007 AMD World Custom Bike Finalist) in person. But I didn't see any of them on the first day of expo!

I could have gone to Naza's showroom or Welly for better bike ogling experience for FREE and best of all, there are no barricades around the bike and you could straddle as many bikes as you want! So in retaliation, I went to Naza and MSC after AIME and felt much better.

AIME '07 is essentially all about custom-built choppers. And stepping into the exhibition hall felt like visiting Orange County Chopper's garage (watch American Choppers on Discovery Channel if you don't dig me).

The choppers are built by people from Japan, Indonesia, US, Thailand etc etc. I didn't really find out the country of origin of every choppers shown. The nearest one can get to the exhibits were 1 metre away from the front tyres. There were repeated announcements in Malay that claims the choppers are freaking darn expensive and one should not cross the barricades and get too near the machines.

This green beast is from Japan, I think. Look at the HUGE FAT rear tyre!

This mean yellow beast is named Hot Docks, and he is from the US.

There was also a Malaysian entry, called the "Angkasawan". This silver chopper with a red-topped V-twin engine is built by a local businessman, costing him RM250,000. The owner, Datuk Wan Adlil said he chose the name to signify Malaysia's success in launching our first "space tourist" at cost of RM1bil of tax-payer's money into space (both the money and tourist)! He should have named his creation "Pelawat Angkasa".
The name "Angkasawan", or Astronaut, is more apt for the rocket-like bike in the following two photos:

Here are the rest of the choppers on display. They are all here, save your RM10.00 and scroll on!See, belt-driven! No chain! Wuaaahhh...This, in my opinion, this is the purist's chopper - the way a proper chopper should be. Spool front hub sans front brake, unencumbered by such eyesores as a big ol' effective drum and its attendant cables mucking up the aesthetics. Riding it would cause sores elsewhere though - ballsore and arsesore. Notice the champion's cup next to the front tyre?

What the heck is this bike doing in the area dominated by mean chopper beasts?!! So out of place!

This looks like the new Suzuki Boulevard

Besides the ultra-expensive custom-built choppers, other companies like Naza, and a few other bike distributors also took part in AIME '07.

Naza, being the Ducati distributor, showcased the new 1098S (voted the sexiest bike on Earth in 2007) and the Hypermotard (next to 1098S in the pict above).

1098S (there are currently about 30-40 units of the base model 1098 being displayed at Naza)

Ducati Monster S4R Testastretta

Ducati Paul Smart 1000

KTM Prestige

KTM Super Duke 990

KTM Super Duke 990R - costing RM10K+ more than the base non-R model!

The gigantic tyres for choppers on display:

A gang of morons hired by AIME to do some moronic sequences of breakdance on stage! They were screaming and yapping and warming up in the photo below:

And there goes my RM15.00...

Tony Roma's @ The Pavilion

2007-10-03T21:02:00.000+08:00

AAAhhh... am finally done with all my reports! No more deadlines for the next two weeks, hopefully! Made a trip back to KL last weekend, and here goes my long overdue post:

Has anyone been to The Pavilion yet?

Built to match the shopping experiences of New Yorks's 5th Avenue, Tokyo's Ginza, Milan, and Paris, Pavilion KL is built across 1.3 million square feet, comprising a 7-level shopping complex, 2 luxury residential towers, a corporate office block, and a 6-star boutique hotel.

It is located directly opposite the current KL Plaza and Starhill. As of last week, it is roughly 70% operational with the top floor being relatively empty. Golden Screen Cinema and True Fitness gym are yet to open. Pavilion is set to be a shopping heaven for rich aunties and spoilt brats! The whole shopping complex is filled up with retail boutiques of various brands! Rachel's first impression was: "Wuuuuaaaahhhhh... got Forever21 here!!!"

The main anchor is Parkson, while Tangs serves as the specialty anchor. Supermarket is catered by Mercato at Level 1, where all the good food are located. We found Tony Roma's!

Tony Roma's is an American chain restaurant famous for its ribs. The restaurant's slogan is "Famous for Ribs". Being a rib-fanatic, I've been longing to wallop Tony Roma's ribs again for a long long time. Exam commitments and moving further south to Batu Pahat didn't help! Was I elated when I found Tony Roma's in Pavilion amidst a famished tummy last Saturday!

We were introduced to their signature barbeque sauces: Original, Blue Ridge Smokies, Carolina Honey, and Red Hots. Loved the Blue Ridge Smokies the best, it's rather similar to TGIF's Jack Daniel's. Original came in second. The remaining two are yucky!

Appetiser - bread with garlic butter

Malaysian Tony Roma's outlets are pork-free (halal), so unlike our southern Singaporean neighbours who gets to enjoy porky baby back ribs, we get only beef ribs. Life's so un-fun without pork... sighhh... LOL! Will definitely chomp down on some TR's pork ribs when I get to Singkapula in December! Here goes the main dishes...

TR Onion Loaf

The Onion Loaf is TR's signature starter dish, which is essentially giant onions, breaded, deep fried and served with BBQ dipping sauce. This is gooood! Comes in sizes of half or full. We ordered half - RM12.90.

The gigantic onions (Onion Loaf)

Grilled Butter Codfish

My sis ordered this Grilled Butter Codfish. You can choose from the many preparations listed, but the "blackened" style with the slightly spicy "kickin' sauce" is highly recommended! Fantastico! RM29.90.

Rib Combo: Ribs with ¼ BBQ Chicken

I shared the Rib Combo set with Rachel. Nandos beat the BBQ chicken hands down. And frankly, the ribs are a bit of a let down. I find myself yearning for TGIF's Jack Daniel's Glazed Ribs while munching TR's slightly burnt beef ribs. Will try the stand-alone rib set next time before giving TGIF the upper hand. RM46.90.

And being a mummy's boy, we were treated to dinner by mom at some small time restaurant which serves great food in Taman Putra, Ampang. Here are the pics. No need to elaborate lah, drool on!

Soup of the day, called "MSG Royale" (FOC)

Steamed catfish in ginger sauce.

Some stirfried veggies with garlic.

Stewed mutton in claypot. Cholesterolitica!

Breaded prawns fried with chili and curry leaves.

Buttermilk crabs!

I miss home!

Killing Roshan

2007-10-01T17:12:00.000+08:00

Look at how Crystal Maiden encase Roshan in a gigantic crystal! And after killing Roshan the third successive time, there'll be a...

CHEESE!

Mantoux Test

2007-09-29T23:24:00.000+08:00

Mantoux test is a test for tuberculosis. The test involves injecting a small amount of tuberculin (an extract of the causative bacteria) into the forearm skin, and the skin reaction measured 72 hours later.

This is the staff nurse who administered my tuberculin injection.

The nurse said the injection itself is quite painful, and claimed that she was quite nervous administrating Mantoux test for a "doctor".

It's an intradermal injection, meaning the stuff is injected right under the skin.

The injection site is left untouched for 3 days; no soap around the injection site during shower. The site is inspected and interpreted by an experienced medical personnel after 72 hours.

The skin reaction on my forearm, 72 hours after injected with the tuberculin.

Simply put, the induration (the reddish hardening) on the skin is measured to arrive to the diagnosis of tuberculosis. An induration of 10mm or more in people with no BCG scar indicates a positive reading for tuberculosis. In most people who are vaccinated against TB and hence, a BCG scar is present, a reading of 15mm or more is needed to indicate a TB infection.

8mm!

My skin induration measured 8mm (and yes, I do have a BCG scar)! That means I don't have TB! Fuhhh... On why I did this test, that's a story for another day!