My Other Side

Grand Entrance

2008-06-22T00:43:00.006+08:00

A few minutes past Maghrib, and a familiar voice entered. Shemi, as predicted, made his grand entrance (knowing him, it was probably planned haha), so all concerns about where to eat and where to shop were ended there and then.

Kisahnya, Sang ADO yang funky ni (dia punya pengakuan sendiri ni) naik bas dari Kamunting ke Bruas bersama-sama sorang foreigner yang jugak terkulat-kulat kat terminal bas. Siap ada budak-budak sekolah recognize Tuan ADO pulak tu dalam bas, walaupun dia hanya berbaju T hijau berseluar pendek dan berselipar jepun saja. Then dari Bruas naik bas sampai ke Lumut, sempat naik feri on the same evening jugak. Nasib baik.

Tomyam time - 6 orang, makan sampai terbongkang dengan ABC dan laicikang (betul ke spelling ni?) yang superb - bayar around RM80 je. Haha. Maybe next posting boleh consider mana2 post yang dekat Lumut/Pangkor kot. Makan murah beb.

muka-muka kenyang selepas melantak

Tengah sedap-sedap makan, ~~Fuad~~ ada pulak mamat yang jeles ni buat video call pegi handphone Zetty. Ada ke patut, orang tengah lepak-lepak kat Pangkor, dia pulak ada kerja kena buat? Patut ke?

Lepas makan, shopping time pulak. Habis segala keropok, ikan kering, satay ikan, ikan bilis kena borong. Yang habis sampai 75 ringgit pun ada. Mel bought two decks of playing cards untuk aktiviti selepas tengah malam nanti.

tersengih2 ikan kat beg plastik tu sebab ada orang memborong sakan

Balik ~~bilik~~ penthouse, movie Hitch tengah play kat TV2. So ~~Zetty~~ ada sorang cakap "tunggu movie ni habis la baru kita bukak kad. Sikit lagi ni" And memang masa tu movie dah nak habis pun. Masalahnya belum sempat movie habis dia dah habis dulu. Pengsan atas sofa. Lepas tu siap ada iringan backup singer dari ada sorang mamat tu pulak. Orang lain punya bising tengah main kad pun diorang tak sedar jugak.

Dalam pukul 11.30 Waty masuk tido (masuk tido bukan tertido). Maybe penat berkayuh kot haha. Tak lama lepas tu dua orang sleeping beauty ni bangun.

"Eh Waty dah tido? awalnya"
"Jom jom main kad"

Hahaha. Budak-budak ni memang sangat ignorant.

Mel was next to go, followed by Shemi. Padahal tadi beriya nak keluar pi jalan-jalan kat luar. Yang budak dua orang ni dah dapat cukup bekalan tido mula la nak kacau orang lain. Aku pun dah tak larat nak layan, so masuk bilik. Tido lagi baik. Dah la tengah hujan pulak tu.

(gambar tido tak buleh letak. Sensitif. Sapa nak buleh personal request. Hahahaha)

Sambung lagi lalalalaa....

The Athlete Who Was Afraid of Dogs

2008-06-15T23:22:00.013+08:00

While I was fighting my way through the rioting crowd to get whatever tickets that were left, the ladies were busying themselves with the souvenir shops at the jetty. No surprise.

Another SMS from Shemi: "Haf fun bro. as promise lemme pay half the amount penthouse. dh lmbt la. aku pun x expect bas dah x pg situ". Either he had given up any hope of reaching Lumut before the last boat at 8.30pm, or he was devising a plan to make a grand entrance later on in Pangkor.

Called Shemi's big bro, who had arranged for our room in Pangkor. Said he got a call from Shemi earlier, and said he told Shemi to turn back since it was already late and there were no vacant seats on the bus from Ipoh to Lumut.

Called Shemi again (the ladies were still enjoying themselves, haha), and was told his phone was running out of battery. Great.

The boat came. We boarded the boat. The boat left the jetty.

tengok Shemi, senyum pun muka kelat je sebab teringat kat hang (terharu tak?)
(kecuali Waty, dia takdak effect apa2 langsung, haha)

memang kami teringat betui la kat hang, Shemi. Tak tipu. Yang senyum2 tu semua lakonan semata2

Arrived on the island about 20 minutes later. Took a taxi van and checked ourselves into what turned out to be a 2-floor apartment overlooking the Malacca Strait and Pangkor Laut. Bliss.

A certain athlete guy suggested to cycle around the island. If riding a well-oiled bike was already hard on the hilly road, imagine me on a sad looking machine with no gears trying to catch up with the rest (but the tokey said "Boleh, boleh, ini baguih punya basikal. Banyak kuat". Banyak la hang punya kuat).

Halfway round the island (maybe not even halfway), ~~Zack~~ the athlete turned back;

"Ada anjing la weh. Bunyi cam banyak ekor je. Korang berani ke nak pegi terus"

Haha. So we turned back and started cycling back to our starting point.

yang kat belakang semua dah lembik

Next stop: the beach! Hohoho the water felt so good. Pics? Haha sorry. Daripada aku terkulat-kulat dengan kamera kat tepi pantai baik la aku berendam sekali.

Talked to Zetty back in the penthouse afterwards, and suddenly she was so positive Shemi would turn up by the end of the day (baru nak teringat Shemi selepas penat bersukaria di tepi pantai, hahaha).

to be continued... (argh panjangnya tak habis2 lagi...)

ps. Click on the pics to get the larger versions

A Tribute To Cendol

2008-06-13T01:07:00.002+08:00

Pagi.

Say goodbye to "first boat of the day". Bangun pun dah pukul 7 (first boat, according to Shemi, departs the ~~zetty~~ jetty at 6 in the morning). By 8 everyone was ready for the next leg, a one-and-a-half hour drive to Lumut. Shemi dengan konfidennya asked us to go first while he would go and reach Lumut by bus via Kamunting. Since Selama is his territory, nobody even thought of slamming his head with a bag and dragging him into the car with us.

First sign of trouble (went unnoticed).

Received an SMS from Shemi even before we reached Taiping. "Haha aku terlepas bas Selama ke Kamunting. Takpa hangpa pi dulu kalau aku lambat"

Sejam setengah kemudian.

Made a pit stop at a 7-11 in Manjung, about 10 minutes away from Pangkor. Then came in a call from the ADO.

Second sign of trouble (impossible to go unnoticed).

Shemi: "Kalau aku bagitau hang jangan gelak tau"
Me: "Ok ok aku tak gelak punya. Pasai apa?"
S: "Tadi aku tunggu punya tunggu takdak jugak bas dari Kamunting pi Lumut. Pastu aku pi la tanya sorang driver. Hang tau dia kata apa? Dah lama dah takdak bas pi Lumut. Aku pun tak tau, masa aku sekolah dulu ada"
M: "So camana ni? Kami dah nak sampai dah" (Nak gelak, tapi memang tak sampai hati)
S: "Takpa la aku try cari bas pi Ipoh then dari Ipoh pi Lumut"

Lumut.

Still concerned about Shemi, we suggested him to take a cab from Kamunting to Lumut. We even offered to share the RM100 fare (sebab takde passenger balik) only to be told "masalahnya bukan duit. Duit aku ada" Dah dalam susah pun ada hati nak brag lagi.

Lunch.

Concerned, concerned jugak. Perut takleh dibiarkan kosong. Jalan punya jalan nampak satu gerai ni. Apa lagi landing lah. Makan nasi campur dengan teh o ais. Tengah makan, datang tuan kedai nak kira berapa kena bayar (bayar asing, sebab semua orang cheapskate). Nasi + Sotong + Sayur + Ikan Goreng + Cencaluk + Teh O Ais? RM10 at least - kalau makan kat food court Alamanda. Kat Lumut? RM4.70. Now THAT is heaven.

Tengah melantak, lalu sorang uncle ni dengan kereta sorongnya. "Cendol" tertulis kat kereta sorong tu. Maka terlekatlah mata-mata PTD ini ke perkataan cendol tu. Pakcik ni pulak landing baeeeekk je kat luar gerai kitorang tengah lunch tu. Tak cukup dengan tu siap laung-laung lagi "Cendol, cendol"

PTD Cendol.

Tak boleh jadi. Pakcik Cendol cuba mencabar kami. Dia belum sedar dia kini berhadapan dengan anak-anak didik PTD Cendol tersohor. We would never settle with anything less than a perfect cendol. And Pakcik Cendol rose to the challenge, delivering cendols with heavy doses of santan, bringing those PTD Cendols to their knees with his the-best-in-the-world concoction.

We bow before your greatness, Pakcik Cendol.

Pangkor and Shemi would have to wait, sebab aku dah mengantuk. Hehe. Tapi sumpah cendol tu memang sedap. Tak tipu.

Dateline: Pangkor - Part II

2008-06-10T21:41:00.003+08:00

Lepas puas berpusing-pusing menghabiskan minyak (harga RM2.70 seliter) dalam bandar Ipoh, kereta MyVi berusia 5 hari itu pun sampailah di hadapan rumah Mel dalam kawasan Sri Ampang. Tanpa berlengah perjalanan disambung menuju bandar megalopolis Selama.

Kalau nak diikut direction Sang ADO, "hangpa keluar tol Bukit Merah then ambik kanan kat first traffic light. Then kanan lagi lepas tasik, lepas terus je sampai hujung jalan, jumpa traffic light masuk kiri. Nanti nampak Hospital Daerah, hangpa call aku dan tunggu kat situ"

Dekat je bunyinya. Shemi dengan convenientnya lupa nak cakap simpang kanan yang kedua tu actually dalam 20+ kilometer lepas tasik. Dan simpang traffic light tu lagi 10km lepas simpang kanan.

Sampai di rumah Shemi around 3. Rupa-rupanya tuan rumah belum tidur, tunggu tetamu-tetamu dari KL. Nak tambah rasa bersalah lagi, siap ada mi gulung dengan nasi berlauk ayam pedas dengan ikan pekasam yang diprepare dari awal.

Zack siap sedia untuk membaham lepas drive sorang2 from Putrajaya to Selama. Ego.

Siap makan lebih kurang, rombongan bergerak ke rumah Sir Jeri (older brother of Sir Shemi, both from the House of Lords, hahah) untuk tidur, since rumah tu ada 3 bilik dan dia duduk situ sorang-sorang.

Sampai rumah Jeri, tak jugak tidur. Merapu punya merapu punya merapu, sampai pukul 4.30 baru lelap. Pagi nanti kononnya nak ambik first boat to Pangkor. Haha. Besar betul angan-angan.

Ah mengantuk lagi! Nampak gaya seminggu la baru habis report ni....

Dateline: Pangkor

2008-06-10T00:28:00.004+08:00

06 Jun 2008

Putrajaya, 1840.
- Zack & Zetty arrived at my house, off we went to Waty's

Putrajaya, 1841.
- Waty: "Aku baru sampai rumah! Gimme 10 minutes aku nak mandi sat"

Uniten, 1855.
- Waty joined the party, off to Selama

PJ SS2, 2000.
- Yeah right, Selama. Roti Hawaii and Ribena Special were too hard to resist

Rawang / Batang Berjuntai, 2200.
- Mel (SMS, from Ipoh): "Korang dah kat mana? Nak keluar pegi Jusco kejap dengan housemate". She must've been fearing we would arrive when she was not home. Haha.

Slim River, some 30 minutes later.
- Shemi (SMS, from Selama): "Dah sampai mana?"
- Myself (SMS, replying to Shemi): "Baru Slim River"
- Shemi (SMS, replying to me, sarcastically): "Bagus"

Ipoh, near midnight.
- Waty: "Ha, hang ambik simpang kanan ni"
- Me: "Betul la ni. Masuk masuk"
- Zack: "Eh ini macam jalan kampung je ni" (but continued driving)
- Me: "Betul ni, nanti sampai hujung jumpa jalan besar ambik kiri"
about 2 km in
- Me: "Alamak silap jalan ni. Pusing balik Zack"

Ipoh town, even closer to midnight.
- Waty, calling a relative asking for directions: "Camana nak ke Sri Ampang?"
- Me: "cepat-cepat cari landmark"
- Zetty: "Tu, tu, Kedai Emas Kamaruddin" pointing to a nondescript small shop among rows of shoplots. Hahahaha.

Ipoh town, maybe already past midnight, and after making U-turn at one road. Twice.
- Waty: "ok pusing kiri kat sini"
- Me: "Ha sini la patutnya kita turn tadi. Aku tak perasan sebab lampu Megoplex tu dah tutup. Betul betul"
- Waty (dalam hati - agaknya la): "Ceh baru nak bising, tadi sampai ke Pekan Razaki dia bawak masuk"
- Me: "Ha tu tu masuk celah-celah Esso dengan Mobil tu. Tu la korang selamba je underestimate aku"
- The rest (dalam hati - kemungkinan besar): "Fuyoh terernya mamat ni!"

Ah, mengantuk. Laters.

Paradise: Conclusion

2008-02-03T21:08:00.000+08:00

The next morning, those Melayus (Azam is also Melayu, no matter what he tried to tell us) did the unthinkable again - being very punctual for breakfast and meeting with Agung at the lobby.

Apparently the shopping session yesterday was still not enough, so the plan was to head to Pasar Sukawati again. Before that, Agung took us to Kuta Beach because, "Nanti orang tanya ada pergi ke Kuta Beach, boleh dibilang ada" or something to that effect. It was low tide, and the surfers were just lazying around with their surfboards lining up along the beach.

Next stop: shopping. I just learned that there should be minimum two sessions of shopping; the "shopping" shopping and the "last minute" shopping. Don't worry if you can't finish buying the first time because there will be a last minute shopping session. No matter what.

Finished shopping at around 11. Agung bought es buah campur, a drink with every fruit you can think of thrown inside. It's like, put a little bit of everything inside the glass, pour in some milk, add water, add some ice cubes (btw, do we still call them ice cubes when the shape is cylindrical?), and voila! you have something to drink on a very hot day.

We finally got back into the van and made our way to Blue Point Bay, Uluwatu. On the way there we went to a shopping mall to get some J.CO donuts because everyone had started to get ~~angry~~ hungry (and on the way to the mall Azam made a "drive-thru" detour at a petrol station). It was the same J.CO, but minus the long and winding queue normally seen at Pavilion or Sunway Pyramid.

(yes we know that already, thank you)

Quite some time later (not sure how long, I fell asleep) we arrived at Blue Point Bay. To say the view was magnificent is a huge understatement. From the top we could see small colourful dots down below in the blue water. We went down the cliff into a cave to get at water level, but couldn't go very far because the tide was already a bit high, and rising. The first cave was the starting point for the surfers (the small colourful dots earlier) as there is no beach in this area. We went back up and had our donuts at a small hut overlooking the sea, with ocean wind blowing in our faces and all. Life could not get better than that, haha.

We didn't take a heavier lunch since we were going to the spa afterwards. Arrived at the spa at around 3pm and waited for about 5 minutes before one after another was called to the massage rooms (Not exactly rooms pun, just sections separated by curtains). The head to toe massage lasted

(blank space to represent dreamland)

a good two hours. And we paid just 166k Rp for it (around RM60). The spa goers among us said the treatment was "ok laa" but definitely not on the same level as, say, Sembunyi Spa or Jojoba Spa at Bukit Bintang. I did find it relaxing (apart from some idiot who forgot to put his mobile phone on silent) though, but what do I know.

5.30pm, and it was time to say goodbye to Agung, and the magnificent Bali. Went back to the hotel to pick up our luggage (and Linda - she got sick and didn't join us the whole day), then straight to the airport. Saw a bar promoting a wet t-shirt contest later that night (dang, too late) along Jl. Kuta, heheh.

Agung dropped us at the airport, and we said our goodbye to him. Us having one hell of a time in Bali owed much to the know how and the friendliness of Pak Agung. Agung, you the man! We headed straight to the check-in counter, paid Rp150k for airport tax (this is for all travelers leaving Bali), and waited in the departure hall for our 8.15pm flight. Outside the hall, we saw people getting off the flight we were boarding, just like ourselves 48 hours before. And yeah those were 48 hours very well spent.

2 and a half hours later, we found ourselves in the more familiar surroundings of LCCT, back to the real world *sigh*. More than one week have passed, and we are still talking about that trip. Bali is a great place, no doubt about it, but the companions are no less important. Guys, you rock! *makes the rock sign*

PS. Pics are still being uploaded. Watch this space.

Paradise: Day 1/Night 2, continued

2008-01-30T23:28:00.000+08:00

Time was very limited, so Agung decided not to stop at Ubud (else there could well be another round of shopping *sigh*). There was time, though, to make a quick stop at Tegallalang, Ubud and marvel at the beauty of the scenery laid out before our eyes. Subhanallah.

It's not exactly padi huma, since padi huma fields are totally dry.

PS. Kichi Kenterong had visited this place before, view his souped-up version of this place here
PPS. Kichi, aku promote kau punya page ni, futsal minggu ni kau bayarkan ok?

We made our way to Tanah Lot (Lot = Laut; Tanah Lot means pertemuan tanah dan laut, according to Agung. Takde kena mengena dengan tanah lot korang beli buat banglo tu) the home to a famous temple, Pura Tanah Lot.

However, we were there for another reason; sunset. Walking straight from the entrance would bring us to the temple in the pictures above, but Agung took us (only three of us, the rest "sudah terlepas", bak kata Agung) to another spot there - higher, and stretches further into the sea. I've never imagined watching the Sun sets could be this {I'm lost for words - captivating?}

Enjoy.

After Tanah Lot, we proceeded to Jimbaran for dinner. Agung reminded us to "pilih dengan wise", as the bill would depend on which and how much seafood we take. Rice and dessert are complimentary (or so it said on the menu). Ordered es jeruk again, only to be disappointed because the taste was nowhere near the one we had the previous night.

Azam saw a roasted pig on a table not far from us, and quickly alerted the rest (Babi Guling apparently is a special delicacy in Bali). After being assured that the Babis (ada 2 ekor, kalau tak silap) was prepared by another restaurant, we settled back at our table waiting for the dinner to arrive.

IMPORTANTE: ahli kongres, please click the play button below before proceeding, to get the feel.

Suddenly came 5 men. One of them asked, "Bisa dihiburkan?"

Upon knowing that we came from Malaysia, they quickly belted out a classic Malaysian song. I don't know the song, but I swear I saw Xue singing along with them. Can you enlighten the rest of us on this, Xue? Then followed by a Dewa 19 number, Separuh Nafas. I was not a fan of this song, but by the end of their superb performance, I couldn't stop humming to its tune.

Gendang gendut tali kecapi. Kali ni memang semua orang gendut. Went back to the hotel very tired (not to mention full). Some of us planned to exact revenge at the UNO table, some of us planned to take a walk to the ~~Hardcore~~ Hard Rock Cafe, but I don't think anyone came back out after entering their rooms. Myself included.

To be continued...

Paradise: Day 1/Night 2

2008-01-29T22:14:00.000+08:00

Bangun 6.45. Dah terang benderang kat luar. Gajahlah Subuh hari ni gayanya (Subuh di Bali masuk pukul 5.01 pagi, Syuruk pukul 6.15)

Lepas mandi, terus ke breakfast di tingkat atas hotel. Semua dah ada, kecuali Echah yang perutnya sakit. Mungkin banyak makan jambu kering waktu main UNO malam tadi.

Pak Agung sudah sampai awal lagi dengan sepeda motor kaler pinknya (missed photo opp #1). Tepat pukul 8 van pun bergerak memulakan lawatan hari ini. Sekalung tahniah kepada Melayu-Melayu ini yang berjaya menepati masa. Sungguh ajaib.

Destinasi pertama: Pantai di Sanur. Tak sure apa sebabnya Pak Agung bawa kami ke sini. Mungkin sudah diterangkan dalam perjalanan, tapi suara Pak Agung ditenggelamkan oleh penduduk-penduduk di barisan kedua van.

Tapi adakah mereka peduli? Tidak!

(perhatikan posisi Pak Agung dan Linda yang langsung tak berubah)

Dari Sanur, van bergerak menuju ke Bali Bidadari Batik, masih di Denpasar. Satu kompleks yang memuatkan beberapa pondok, satu bangunan utama dan satu porch di depannya, tempat wanita-wanita Bali mempamerkan kemahiran menenun/melukis batik. Kalau pernah melihat orang melukis batik di Terengganu, memang methodnya sama, tapi corak dan gaya lukisan batik Bali adalah berbeza.

Tak lama di tempat batik, perjalanan diteruskan ke {aku tak ingat nama tempatnya} untuk menyaksikan Barongan Dance. Secara umumnya, tarian ni menceritakan tentang Good (Barongan) vs Evil (Rangda). Agak susah untuk difahami, kecuali kalau dibaca dulu pamphlet yang diedarkan. Tapi bunyi-bunyian background yang dihasilkan dek kumpulan gamelan memang sangat superb.

Dari Denpasar langsung kami ke Pasar Sukawati untuk aktiviti kegemaran wanita; shopping! Rule of thumb: tawar. Harga beli mesti paling tidak setengah dari harga mula. Dan jangan mengada-ngada nak cari price tag - sini bukan tempatnya. Proses beli belah lebih kurang begini;

1. Pembeli (A) menunjukkan minat
2. Penjual (B) cakap "murah, murah" atau "masuk mas/mbak (mas = abang; mbak = cik rasanya, panggilan untuk perempuan), masih banyak pilihan di dalam"
3. A tanya, "berapa?"
4. B letak harga
5. A kerut muka, "mahalnya"
6. B cakap, "bisa ditawar.... berapa?" (Di sini, sekali bertanya harga, penjual akan cuba sedaya upaya untuk close the deal. Advantage untuk pembeli. Tapi jangan melampau sangat laa)
7. A cantas harga tinggal setengah
8. Giliran B kerut muka, "nggak bisa..." kemudian menurunkan sedikit harga mula, tapi belum cukup dekat dengan harga tawaran
9. A tetap dengan harga tadi dan mula buat gaya-gaya nak keluar tanpa membeli sebab tak dapat harga yang ditawar
10. B berlembut dan menurunkan harga lagi, biasanya lebih dua atau tiga ribu Rp dari harga tawaran
11. A terus dengan gaya nak keluar kedai (perlu keazaman yang tinggi dan sedikit kezaliman di sini)
12. B mengalah dan setuju dengan harga tawaran
13. A bayar duit; B ambil dan mengetuk-ngetuk duit tadi ke barangan lain dalam kedai untuk melariskan jualan

Selepas sesi shopping yang mengambil masa tujuhbelas jam tamat, perjalanan disambung ke Pura Tirta Empul, tempat penganut Hindu menyucikan diri dengan mandi di kolam air yang terhasil dari beberapa mata air di dalam kuil.

Nak masuk ke dalam kuil, pinggang harus diikat dengan riben/sash. Kalau berseluar pendek, harus dililit kain batik buat menutup bahagian kaki. Di bahagian dalam baru kelihatan mata air yang menghasilkan kolam tadi, dan ada beberapa tempat beribadat juga tempat istirehat.

Perut yang mula lapar minta diisi. Tapi terpaksa menunggu dulu di van sebab ada perempuan-perempuan yang masih ada mood untuk bershopping di luar kompleks kuil tadi. Mereka sampai, dan kami bergegas ke daerah Kintamani.

Terpegun melihat pemandangan Gunung milik Pak Agung, kami menyelinap di celah-celah kanak-kanak penjual souvenir untuk mengambil gambar. Perlu cepat, sebab nampak dari jauh awan hujan semakin hampir. Hujan turun, dan gerai bakso di dinding bukit jadi sasaran. Bakso dalam sup panas sewaktu hujan. Fuh....

Gendang gendut tali kecapi. Tapi tak semua orang kenyang perut, sebab tak makan bakso. Tapi perjalanan mesti diteruskan juga. Van dipandu Pak Agung menuju Ubud.

To be continued....

Welcome To Paradise

2008-01-28T01:30:00.001+08:00

This was a vacation more than half a year in the making. And boy it was worth every single day of the long wait.

The 8 of us boarded the AirAsia 4.40pm flight to Bali, and landed at Ngurah Rai International Airport about 2 and a half hours later, to the soothing sound of gamelan playing over the loudspeakers. After immigration check and a detour to kamar kecil (language lesson time: kamar kecil = toilet), we met our friend Pak Agung, who was already waiting outside, and off we went to check ourselves into Restu Bali Hotel.

After check-in we went for a short walk to the memorial of the 2002 Bali bombing (called "Monumen Bomb Blast" by Pak Agung, not sure if that's the official name). The exact location of the car used in the bombing was also marked, with a circle - probably of the same size as the crater created by the blast - on the street.

We continued walking and reached Kuta Square, the shopping hotspot in Kuta. There was quite a number of well known brands doing business here. We just passed by without buying anything - All these stuff can be bought in KL at the same prices anyway.

Made a not-so-quick stop at Hard Rock Cafe's store, few of us bought t-shirts there (what is this obsession about HR Cafe's T-Shirts??) while some others *cough*Pak Agung and Hanif*cough* went to the convenient store to replenish their oxygen supply (A Marlboro pack of 20 costs less than RM6 in Bali, haha). We had continued walking when the kereta kuda (forgot what they are called over there) guys called out to Pak Agung - "3000Rp to the gerai you are going to".

Deal. "It couldn't be that far to the makan place, but let's ride anyways, for experience's sake".

Dead wrong. We took about 10 minutes, if not longer, to get to the gerai, by the kereta kuda. We couldn't fit in 9 people in 2 carts, so Pak Agung rode at the back of his friend's sepeda motor (sepeda motor = motosikal lah)

We had nasi padang at the gerai. The food was biasa-biasa je, about the same thing as nasi campur in Malaysia. But Pak Agung introduced us to the wonderful beverage of es jeruk (es = ais), a glass of orange juice with lime squeezed into it. So simple anybody can prepare the drink themselves. Fabulous.

Too tired to venture out after dinner, we said good night to Pak Agung ("Panggil Agung saja") and promised to meet him at 8 the next morning. A round of sembang-sembang outside the rooms and a few rounds of UNO (where we deliberately let Azam win once, and Echah twice) later, we retired for the night, looking forward to the next two days.

To be continued....

Touchdown!

2008-01-03T23:12:00.000+08:00

Again?? Yes, again *grins*

Firefox Weather Add-On

2007-12-31T12:04:00.000+08:00

Ever wonder what the weather at any particular place on Earth is like, real-time? Yeah you can just head straight to Yahoo! Weather, or Google for "weather Beijing" (if you want to know the weather in Beijing, of course).

However, if you are too lazy to do that, or your PC is a total crap even opening another tab/window will slow it down (not unlike my faster-than-fast P667E Win2K machine) then Forecastfox is for you. It's a Firefox add-on that allows users to display weather forecast right on the browser's status bar or toolbar.

As the case with most add-on installations, this one only took a few seconds to be ready (requires a browser restart, but no drama here). It needs some setup, though. Go through the options and the first thing that needs to be set is the location. It's in codes, but users can locate the code by clicking the Find Code button and search the code for their cities. Looks like only major cities are available - Beijing is CHXX0008 and Kuala Lumpur is MYXX0008, but searches for Putrajaya and Shah Alam returned no result.

All the setup done (a few more tweaks here and there included), now you can continue browsing with the weather info displayed neatly on the toolbar (or status bar). Hover the cursor above the info and you'll get a nice tooltip as well.

The display on the toolbar is customisable. I chose to display the name of the place, description of forecast and the current temperature (1°C! that's like living in an icebox). 07:36 is the sunrise time and 16:59 is sunset (it's winter so the night is longer).

Oh, and you can also create a few profiles for different places, then set the option to rotate the profiles after a short period, for example 1 minute. Nice.

Ps. Never knew you can get a blue sky at 1°C. Pic taken from xinhuanet.com. That was on Sunday (yesterday).

Rafael Nadal - Richard Gasquet

2007-11-25T22:53:00.000+08:00

Event: Clash of Titans
Venue: Stadium Malawati, Shah Alam

Date: 20 Nov 2007

"Bila lagi nak tengok Nadal kat Malaysia?"

On that pretext, Kichi Kenterong and I went to watch Nadal take on Gasquet just over a week after their duel at the Masters Cup.

The match started after some entertainment from Ruffedge and a cultural performance to show the world that we live in harmony despite the race diversity.

Stadium was half full (or half empty, depending on your perspective), probably the rest are spending their hard-earned money on the main course in two days' time - the GOAT (greatest of all time) against the potentially future GOAT. Let's save that for later.

The two players hit a few balls to the crowd (too bad we were seated too high up there were no love for us), then spent around 10 minutes warming up and testing the pitch with their ground strokes and serves.

Both players took some time to get into their rhythms, after that Gasquet started hitting his powerful backhands and Nadal began to run around the court like a madman. The crowd went really wild once when Nadal chased the ball to the baseline and ended a long rally with a shot through his legs. Even Gasquet applauded that one.

Nadal won the match 2 set to 1 (forgot the full results), but that was secondary. It might be an exhibition match, and they most probably were playing way below their competitive form, but to my untrained eyes that was as good as it gets. Value for money? Hell yeah. We even got close to the front row of the second tier by the end (remember we bought the ticket for third tier seats).

Bring on the GOATS!

The rest of the pics can be viewed here.

ps. Images from the Federer-Sampras hasn't been uploaded yet.

to make you fuctup

2007-11-13T18:11:00.000+08:00

Monday.

Weekend was good.

Today should be good as well.

I finally saw the new Org Chart last week.

I finally have a boss to report to.

After 3 months joining the company.

After 3 months of uncertainties.

After 3 months of being in a team without any real work and no leader.

I'm going to send an e-mail to George, my new boss.

(George just joined last month)

"Hi George, I need to have a private discussion with you, whenever you are free"

"I would like to get a clearer picture of my responsibilities after we reorganized the department last week"

"Right now I'm doing this, this, this. I'm thinking of handing this over to the Helpdesk people, but this and this I will continue. Also, I think it's better if I learn this and this in order to do my job better"

"I was not with the On-Site Support people before, so I'm not very aware of the work process. I will need to familiarise myself with it first"

And some other things I had in my head, while driving to work.

George is not around.

Maybe he's in a meeting with the VP, as he normally is.

Maybe he's having a discussion with his fellow managers, as he normally do.

Never mind, I'll get some other works done first.

Chew comes and asks if I can test some devices which arrived earlier.

Sure, no problem.

"So who'll keep these devices? You or the account department?" Chew asks.

"Dunno, before this Lim kept all the devices with him"

(Lim was the R&D Project Manager)

(He had left the company)

Me: "Maybe you can discuss with George"

Chew: "George left already"

WTF??

Part IV

2007-10-05T09:49:00.001+08:00

Yup, almost.

Hey There Delilah - Part III

2007-10-02T09:17:00.000+08:00

Sony Ericsson W550i: RM1500++ (3 years ago)
Monthly subscription with Maxis: RM75 (excluding tax)
International Roaming call rate: RM4.50/min

Getting a phone call at 3.30am from a place 5 time zones away, and managed to answer it: PRICELESS

Today is going to be a good day indeed

Hey There Delilah - Part II

2007-09-28T12:55:00.000+08:00

Hi again,

My weekend is just a few hours away! It has been quite a slow week, so it's a relief to finally reach Friday. I'm not going anywhere this weekend. Saturday will be a lazy day with nothing whatsoever planned. Saturday night I'll be near your area for my weekly futsal with budak2 Koleq. Just started playing there 2 weeks ago. The pitch is somewhat heavy/slow for my liking, but the drainage system there is perfect (this is the current inside joke, don't worry if you don't get it). Planning to go out for sahur with an old friend afterwards, maybe somewhere around Sunway or Shah Alam before driving back home. Followed by one whole day of sleep on Sunday, hehe (Astaghfirullah....)

Come to think of it, I do have some things to do this weekend. Your payments can be done online, so that's not a problem. I haven't bought the tickets for that P Ramlee musical you want to watch, so I need to get it done within the next two days. And also the duit raya, of course.

Xue called early yesterday morning. I half-expected her to say she had a message from you, but Xue being Xue, she just blurted out "Eh kau tau tak perempuan ni punya kunci rim simpan kat mana?" I almost laughed out loud on the spot, but decided not to since I was already in the office. Your MyDude got a flat tyre, and she was trying to find the tool to unscrew the special nut on the wheel.

Your sister hasn't called, which means either (a) she's doing okay by herself or (b) she has been bugging Xue all this while, haha. She should be more comfortable calling Xue than me, thankfully.

Zen found out that Tony is planning for a berbuka get together through my previous post, and said he felt offended he was not invited, haha. Not invited yet, actually, because Tony was planning to e-mail the invite later yesterday. Not like he's joining for sure, as Sha is currently at the final stages of her pregnancy (and not that I know anything about pregnancies). Even if he's able to join, he'll be there only with his son Zen jr.

12.45pm - Near Solat time. I'll probably get back to you later this evening, or maybe tomorrow. Planning to go to this nasi ayam place for berbuka today with another old friend.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend (weekend should start on Friday over there, shouldn't it?). Take care. Bye for now.

Hey There Delilah

2007-09-26T22:23:00.000+08:00

Hi,

How are you doing? Yahoo! says it's 38 degrees where you are at 5pm today, but I hope it won't stop you from doing what you are there for.

It's half past ten here. I just arrived home about an hour ago, after having a berbuka gathering with my ex-colleagues (from my previous place). We went to Bukit Bintang, feasting ourselves at the Pizza Hut near the Lot 10/BB Plaza crossroads. There were 9 of us altogether - Farah and Emma and Azali, all 3 you have met before - joined by Earl, Fiona, Monica, Fendi the new guy, and Dave, who is even newer than Fendi. Emma and Farah reserved our table and ordered the food at 5pm, but they didn't arrive until a good 5 minutes after berbuka. Had a good chat with the guys, and the conversations are eventually (and understandably) centered around the funny/unique/stupid/idiot customers they have to put up with every single day. One of them (my ex-colleagues, not the customers) had just bought a house, another one had cut his previously long hair short, another one says she got thinner since the day I left the company. And from them I came to know that another one is planning for the official berbuka do later this week, another one is having problem with her back, and another one is, to put it politely, not a silent sleeper, hehe.

It had stopped raining when we said our goodbyes just now. We had continuous drizzle since noon today. It has been cloudy these past few mornings, but it never rained until today. Not that I would have noticed if it had rained, since my desk is deep inside the building at my new workplace. I just realized it was raining when I went out to go the surau this afternoon. We have to cross the road to get to the surau (actually it's a small masjid), located at Level 6 inside the building there. There's no surau inside our own building. Heh, even the toilets are actually located outside the office, so any visitors could use it without entering our office.

Oh, and I had created an online banking account for you on my way back home just now. BTW, your pay for this month is already in *grin*, mine is not *evil grin*. Will settle the payments later, and I must remember to change some of your money to small denominations for duit raya (need to change some of mine as well)

Had a chat with Zu (husband of Sue). He said they (both of them plus Tony and his wife-to-be) are going to The Curve for berbuka early next month, and asked if I'd like to join. Told him I would love to go, but can't decide yet since someone is coming home two days earlier, and I want to wait for that someone first before deciding.

I called your number a few times today, just for the sake of pressing the speed dial button - the speed dial button - on my mobile. I knew the lovely lady at Maxis would pick up the call, and she surely did, every time without fail. No worries, I'll get another lady at the other end, eventually. Nine (what??? NINE???) more days won't be that long, will it? Weekend is just around the corner and before you know it, 2 weeks has passed.

Getting sleepy now. Need to go to bed earlier this fasting month, else I won't be able to wake up for sahur. Almost missed it last night after playing PS2 until 2 o'clock, hehe. I couldn't resist, more so when I'm trailing the league leaders, London Blue by 5 points with 5 games to go, and leading AC Milan 2-1 in the Euro Championship.

I'll talk to you again tomorrow. Take good care of yourself.

You Must Be Kidding Me!!

2007-07-22T14:53:00.000+08:00

Will Shahidan Be The Next FAM Deputy President? (click for story)

Salahkan Indra Putra!

2007-07-16T22:44:00.000+08:00

Indra Putra memang tak patriotik.

Gameplan Malaysia sebenarnya nak bagi team lawan menang 5-0 supaya kita semua boleh sambut Ulangtahun Merdeka ke 5-0 - I mean, 50 - dengan lebih bermakna lagi. Mungkin Cikgu Jan coach dari Utara yang speakingnya berabuk hanya bagitau gameplan kat player First XI je. Masuk je si Indra ni ganti Akmal masa second half tu tetiba je main betul-betul pulak. Jangan ingat diorang tak berapa celebrate gol tu sebab dah takde chance nak kejar balik, sebenarnya diorang kecewa dan rasa bersalah kat rakyat Malaysia sebab tak dapat sama-sama menyumbang untuk sambutan ulangtahun merdeka ke 5-0.

Tapi Cikgu Jan memang seorang coach yang cepat belajar dan cepat juga bertindak. Kali ni dia make sure semua player tak kira First XI ataupun subs, semua kena dengar gameplan. "Mesti tunjuk kita punya patriotik, ini la masanya kita nak tunjuk semangat kita kat VIP-VIP kat main stand tu" macam tu la agaknya ayat pembakar semangat Cikgu Jan. Dan Indra pun dah belajar dari kesilapan masa first game - walaupun berjaya buat satu flick yg cukup cun melepasi sorang bek Uzbek, dia tetap tak mau score jugak, lalu dia buat-buat miskick meleleh bola tu lalu tepi tiang. Dan misi team Malaysia mengejar sambutan kemerdekaan ke 5-0 berjaya jugak Sabtu lepas. Tinggal satu game je lagi untuk membuktikan patriotik pemain-pemain kita memang sampai ke akhir perjuangan, bukan sangkut di tengah jalan.

MALAYSIA BOLEH!!

Notakaki:
1. Gol dengan backheel flick Indra Putra tu je la positive highlight team Malaysia dalam tournament ni, bagi aku
2. Apa guna komplen lagi? Don't tell me you guys really expected something from our football team??
3. But I'll keep barking - lantak la kalau takde effect apa-apa pun, janji aku puas

How Old Are You?

2007-05-04T10:18:00.000+08:00

WARNING: This is a brag post. If you can't stand me bragging, go away. Stop reading now.

Now.

Now.

Now.

Now.

Hey! Now! (Human Trait - you won't do what you were asked to do). Read on, then

We stepped on this thing last weekend during the OBW;

And suddenly everyhing about us came up - body fat, bone mass, basal fat, metabolic age, spouse's name, previous fling's name, salary.

Some of the stats displayed - taken from fitsense's website - check the website for the full descriptions;

Visceral Fat Rating - Visceral fat surrounds the internal organs in the stomach/trunk area of your body. High levels of visceral fat increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Monitoring your results can help you adjust your lifestyle to stay in the low risk range. The Visceral Fat Healthy Range shows if the amount of visceral fat you have is healthy - (The rating starts at 1 - the best - going upwards)

Metabolism Age - Your BMR starts to decrease after the age of 17 and the metabolic age rating indicates what age level your body is currently rated at. The results range guide covers ages between 12 and 50 years old.

Physique Rating - Describes your overall physique or body shape by examining the balance between the amounts of body fat and muscle in your body (it's a scale from 1 to 9, with 9 being the best)

And here's the bragging part (pic is too small - click for large view);

The Physique Rating is actually an 8, not a 7 - that's the carbon copy of the actual slip. And I'm actually 17! For comparison, Ipin's (metabolic) age is 19, Kichi is 21, Ayul of '94 is 26 (he's 30 this year), Minh Anh the Viet chick is 17 and Mr X and Mr Y from my batch are 46 and 53 respectively :-0

And check out the Visceral Fat Rating, dudes....

P/S: Yes, it does tell you how much you are earning muhahahahaha...

Bihun Sup Utara

2007-04-23T00:28:00.000+08:00

Trip to Penang 21-22 Apr 2007:

4-hour journey
a plateful of nasi minyak
a bunch of good mates
1 Sunway Hotel room
1 bowl of Bihun Sup Utara by Caca (pic - courtesy of Kichi)
a detour to Kuala Kangsar
One hell of a weekend
Visit mckk9296.com for more

We Kicked A**es!!

2007-04-12T00:08:00.000+08:00

Report - Better late than never - we've got one whole year to brag anyway...

MCOBA Futsal datang lagi... dan seperti biasa dekat je nak tournament maka keluarlah teori yang diestablish lepas 2nd edition dulu.

Masa group stage first tournament dulu Team 96 melangkah ke pusingan kalah mati dengan bergaya - sangat bergaya. Goal difference rasanya mau lebih 10 dalam 3 game. Siap belasah satu team tu 7-0 ke 8-0 tah. Kiranya lepas group stage je semua orang taknak lawan kitorang. Alih2 first game knockout rounds dah kalah. Tournament lepas tu kitorang tak bergaya sangat, and kantoi kat Semi. Lepas tu la keluarnya teori agung;

"First tournament kalah quarter, 2nd tournament kalah semi, 3rd tournament kita masuk final, 4th tournament confirm menang ah"

Tapi tu semua teori2 kosong je. Boleh jadi sebab confident dengan teori agung tu kitorang hantar 2 team buat kali pertamanya ke tournament nombor 3. Satu team penuh dengan star (star = ramai ex-player Koleq), satu lagi team yang on paper kira power la jugak. Tengok hasil - hampeh. Team yang konon2nya Team B lepas sampai plate semi je, team yang glittering dengan stars haram tak lepas groups stage pun - nak masuk plate pun tak layak.

Postpone punya postpone, postpone punya postpone, dari sebelum puasa taun lepas sampai la dekat 3 bulan lepas raya haji, last2 jadi jugak tournament 2007. Confirm je hantar 2 team, terus scout the transfer market carik player - nasib baik Mat Jusoh (to be known as MJ from here onwards) available on free transfer, terus grab la apa lagi.

Organizer cakap tournament start pukul 9, tapi standard la kalau dah namanya deal dengan Kolej MELAYU memang takkan boleh on time punya. Aku yang sampai 15 minit lambat (lambat sebab latest signing, Kadir, lambat sampai rumah - dia carpool sekali pagi tu - bukan salah aku ok) pun still jadi antara yang terawal sampai.

Selain dari teori agung, ada lagi sub2 teori yang ditimbulkan untuk memastikan kejayaan taun ni;

1. "Kita takleh push awal2 nanti sampai knockout je dah penat. Tengok apa jadi masa first tournament dulu" - kiranya confident gila la ni boleh lepas group stage walaupun tak push betul2
2. "Jangan ikut game diorang - main je game kita sendiri jangan ikut orang" - tak sure semua orang aware ke tak gameplannya
3. "First game kita dapatkan feel dulu biasa la first game mesti nervous punya"

Banyak punya teori... Teori no.3 punya pasal, first half lawan 97 berterabur gila. Game plan ke mana, feel ke mana. Half time 97 lead 1-0. Nasib baik boleh recover, dapat 1 point lepas seri 1-1.

Game 2 - mesti lebih prepared punya. Bull**** - belum apa2 dah kena 2 bijik. Ambik korang konon taknak push sangat. Diorang batch 2003, mesti still fit punya. Boleh la lari laju2 tak penat. Terpaksa kitorang naikkan performance level dari 10% ke 30% dan masukkan MJ. Sekali lagi comeback - dapat balik 2 gol - seri 2-2.

Game 3 - lawan 1993. 10 taun lagi tua dari previous opponents, 10 kali lagi slow (no offense, hehe). Memang suit kitorang punya game lah (fuh) - konon.... berpeluh jugak nak menang 1-0. Tapi sebab semua game lain dalam group tu draw (semua - all 6 games except our last game), kitorang lepas ke next stage as group champions.

Lepas melantak KFC Bucket yang dibeli Opeq (1. nampak cam sponsor, tapi sebenarnya dia pau kitorang sorang 10 ringgit; 2. BUKAN bucket yang sama dengan yang dilantak oleh Team 94 *cough*cough*), kitorang lawan team 95. Malas dah nak bagi chance kat team lawan, kitorang bagi MJ start kali ni (sebelum ni MJ main sub je). Dengan automatiknya gameplan berubah - 3 orang defend macam nak mati, dapat je bola pass kat MJ lepas tu either

A. MJ buat keje sorang2 sampai bola tu masuk dalam gol
atau
B. MJ tarik 2, 3 orang defender, pass kat member yang kosong, pastu bola masuk dalam gol jugak

See? Camana pun bola tetap akan habis dalam net korang jugak hahahahaha (evil laugh)

R2 menang 4-0, lepas tu QF lawan 94 team kurus (diorang ada team kurus dengan team gemuk - refer sini). Kalau sapa2 penah tengok diorang main masa 94 confirm gerun punyalah nak lawan team ni. Kitorang pun ada jugak la gerun sikit2 - ada advantage sikit sebab playmaker diorang Kalai (of Butterfingers fame) injured. Tapi dengan performance level yang telah sampai ke paras 55%, kitorang menang 3-0. Oh, and takde KFC bucket terlibat dalam game ni.

SF lawan 2005 - mentah lagi ni.... teringat masa kitorang main first tournament dulu - dapat bola je nak lari, dapat bola je nak lari. Kitorang menang quite easily 2-0 - ni mesti diorang dah push gila2 masa group stage ni (refer sub-teori No.1)

Final!! lawan 97 (Team lain, bukan team kat group tadi) yang menang dengan team yang pakai baju Chelsea tu (pakai baju Chelsea, camana nak menang?) dalam satu lagi semi. Diorang lead 1-0 masa kitorang main dengan mengawal kuasa berlawan pada paras 65%. Terus kitorang boost level sikit and dapat equalizer guna gameplan B (MJ pass kat member). 2nd half diorang try control game, tapi thanks to MJ yang harrass diorang gila2 dapat jugak curik bola and scored the winner. Diorang try attack gila2, tapi kubu kebal yang ditutup oleh keeper yang besar tak berjaya dicerobohi, dan beberapa minit lepas tu tertunailah teori agung yang mengambil masa 4-5 tahun untuk dibuktikan (ada glitch sikit masa 3rd tournament tu)

Congrats to the players:
MJ - Top signing, top player, top salary, top scorer
Moq - The Impenetrable Great Wall of Penang - tapi sekarang mungkin dah bersara sebab dah ada hobi baru
Zef - Defence rock ala2 Vidic - kept the ship stable sempat gak score 2 3 bijik (cam Vidic la jugak)
Syul - Forward with good positioning (@curi ayam , depends on how you look at it) - pass je depan gol mesti dia ada kat situ
Izzy - Arsenal fan playing in United shirt hahahaha....
Kichi - Left-side player with mazy run confusing opponents as well as teammates
Kadir - Last-minute signing just before the transfer window closed. Defended as much as possible with almost all parts of the body including the most important one
Ayul - Captain Marvel, Supremo, Midfield General, Influential playmaker, mazy dribbler, basically the most complete player lah senang cite

Dodgy event 1: Moq punya la kebal dari R2 sampai SF alih2 waktu final lepas soft goal je??
Dodgy event 2: Team Chelsea lawan 2003, tapi orang kat luar tak tengok dalam pitch LANGSUNG
Dodgy event 3: Nampak macam ada 2 KFC Bucket, tapi apsal masa makan ada satu je? Mana pegi lagi satu?
Dodgy event 4: Dengarnya ada prize money untuk winners. Team Manager saudara Opeq pegi Jepun 2 minggu lepas menang tournament. Dia cakap pasal keje la... Convenient betul timingnya

So... what happens to the Teori Agung for the next tournament??

Tragedi Malam Sunyi

2007-02-10T20:34:00.000+08:00

11.05pm.

Kelisa 1.0 GXi 2006SE itu meluncur membelah malam yang semakin larut. Suara Amy Search bingit mengisi ruang dalam kereta. Seperti biasa, tak banyak manusia yang masih berada di jalan raya, lebih-lebih lagi di jalan yang sunyi dari Puchong menghala ke Cyberjaya.

"Shucks, esok keje pulak. Pukul enam pulak tu. ENAM!! Ayam pun belum bangun lagi pukul 6 aku dah kena melayan those stupid a***ies. Ntah boleh bangun ke tak ni. Sibuk lagi nak pegi main futsal, kan dah penat"

Kini sudah hampir ke Plaza Tol Puchong Selatan, kira-kira 15 minit lagi dari destinasi malam itu. Tingkap kereta yang terbuka membenarkan angin malam menghembus sang pemandu. Sekurang-kurangnya dapat menyegarkan mata yang letih dari terlelap sebelum tiba di matlamat perjalanan.

Tanpa sebarang amaran tiupan angin menjadi semakin dingin. Tingkap yang tadinya luas terbuka kini diangkat hingga hampir sampai ke atas. Nun di depan selepas plaza tol hanya gelap yang menanti, tanpa sebarang lampu jalan yang sama ada rosak ataupun sengaja ditutup untuk menjimatkan kos/memaksimumkan untung (potong yang tidak berkenaan)

Entah mengapa sang pemandu berasa kurang selesa memandu. Di fikirannya hanya ingin sampai ke destinasi selekas mungkin. Jalan gelap yang menanti di depan seolah-olah menyimpan seribu kemungkinan.

SmarTag dengan kad Touch n' Go yang baru ditambah kreditnya dikeluarkan. Lorong TnG dan lorong tunai lengang, tapi lebih baik dan lebih cepat membayar menggunakan SmarTag - Teknologi canggih yang membolehkan pemandu membayar tol tanpa perlu menurunkan tingkap ataupun menghentikan kenderaan. Kereta diperlahankan ke 30km/j.

5 meter dari plaza tol... Palang masih belum terangkat
4 meter.... biasanya perlu lebih dekat
3 meter.... ok, cuma sedikit lagi
2 meter.... mana bunyi pengesahan SmarTag??
1 meter...
0 meter... lampu plaza tol masih merah. Palang tak bergerak walau sedikit. Kereta di belakang menyuluh dengan lampu tinggi. Tanda tidak sabar, mungkin.

"Mungkin ada masalah dengan sensor. Takpe, aku try reverse sikit"

Reverse. Tiada respon dari palang
Terus reverse hingga ke luar. Masih tiada respon
Masuk ke dalam semula perlahan-perlahan. Sekali lagi palang tidak terangkat

Hati yang tadinya risau semakin kuat berdegup. Petanda apakah ini? Adakah sesuatu cuba menghalang sang pemandu dari terus ke depan? Ada apa yang menunggu di depan sana?

Kereta diundurkan kembali. Kini kereta lain pula yang berada di belakang, yang pertama tadi sudah bergerak ke lorong sebelah. Masih tiada respon dari palang sewaktu mengundur. Kereta yang baru sampai di belakang tadi juga sudah hilang sabar, dan bergerak ke lorong sebelah. Sekilas pandang kepada pemandu tersebut, kelihatan seperti dia menunjuk ke atas. Ah sudah, makhluk apa pula yang bertenggek di atas?

Sang pemandu terus mengundurkan kereta sambil mata memandang ke atas....

"Duh, lorong Touch n' Go rupanya...."

Pantas sang pemandu menurunkan tingkap, bergerak semula ke depan, menyentuh kad TnG kepada sensornya, dan terus laju meluncur pergi meninggalkan plaza tol dengan harapan tiada siapa yang melihat dan tiada kamera yang merakam...

Kisah Black Yang Ganas

2006-12-28T00:13:00.000+08:00

Tersebut kisah 3 sahabat - si Telinga dari Lembah Kelang, si Hidung dari Kepulauan Borneo dan si hensem bergaya dari Utara Semenanjung - yang baru melangkah kaki ke satu alam dan dunia baru yang diberi nama.... Skudai.

Tamat minggu orientasi, 3 orang sahabat merancang ke Larkin untuk bershopping. Kali ini mereka perlu keluar sendiri tanpa mengharapkan bantuan samada dari veteran-veteran Skudai mahupun orang tempatan seperti Abdus. Takkan keluar ke Larkin pun nak mintak orang tunjuk jalan kan? Gila tak macho.

Setelah berjalan kaki dari Blok G22 ke hentian bas melalui satu blok hostel wanita, sambil menahan telinga disuit-suit (camana eja tah) awek-awek dari dalam hostel perempuan G7 rasanya (sangat buruk perangai mereka ini terjerit-jerit seperti beruk jangan ditiru. Tau la diorang ni smart gila toksah la terjerit-jerit camtu awak tu perempuan), bas T Hakkim nombor 214 pun sampai. Si hidung yang merupakan manusia paling konfiden antara 3 orang ni pun bertanya, "bas ni pegi Larkin tak bang?" pada driver bas. Driver bas menjawab, "Tak, bas ni pegi Johor (notakaki 1), kalau nak pegi Larkin nanti kena tukar bas kat simpang Skudai sana". Lalu diorang 3 orang ni pun naik la bas T Hakkim kaler biru tu.

Sampai di simpang Skudai, driver bas suruh diorang turun dan naik bas lain untuk ke Larkin. Si Hidung mengeluarkan teori, "mesti kita kena seberang jalan kalau nak pegi Larkin, kalau sebelah sini jugak mesti bas tadi pun lalu Larkin punya". Yang kawan dia lagi 2 orang pun angguk kepala tanda setuju, tak sangka bijak pulak mamat yang rumah dia atas pokok ni. Naik la diorang jejantas yang ada kat situ untuk lintas jalan dan tunggu bas kat sebelah sana.

Bas kaler merah sampai. Manusia berpusu-pusu nak naik dulu takut nanti kena berdiri dalam bas. Seperti biasa, si Hidung yang konfiden naik dulu dan mengeluarkan duit syiling untuk membayar tambang. Sambil mengangkat tangan untuk memasukkan duit syiling dalam tabung duit tu dia bertanya, "Pegi Larkin berapa tambang bang" dan dibalas dengan satu pandangan blur dari driver bas. "Bas ni tak lalu Larkin. Nak pegi Larkin naik bas kat sebelah sana, bukan sebelah sini. Bas ni pegi Gelang Patah. Kau tau tak Gelang Patah kat mana?" kali ni si Hidung pulak yang terkulat-kulat sebab blur. Lalu dengan muka toye pun ketiga-tiga mereka turun dari bas. Satu bas tengok kat diorang, mungkin sebab kagum dengan kesengalan diorang. Tapi mamat driver bas ni tak habis lagi. Sambil diorang turun dari bas mamat driver bas menoleh ke belakang ke arah penumpang-penumpang lain dan berkata dengan nada mencebik,

"Ada ke Gelang Patah pun tak tau kat mana??"

Tapi pada waktu seluruh bas tengah gelak tu diorang dah cukup jauh dah untuk cover malu. Lepas tu diorang lintas balik ikut jejantas tadi, naik satu lagi bas merah yang kali ni terpampang tulis "LARKIN" kat cermin depan.

Sampai di Larkin, diorang masuk satu kedai kaset (yup kaset, bukan CD, bukan VCD, apatah lagi MP3) sebab Dol pesan kat si Hidung suruh beli kaset 911 (hahahaha Dol layan boyband rupanya) yang baru keluar di pasaran. Tengah si Hidung membelek-belek kaset, si Hensem tengah blur sorang-sorang kat tengah kedai. Si Telinga pulak tengah lepak-lepak kat luar kedai.

Tiba-tiba si Hensem terdengar si Telinga memanggil. Nampak ada seorang pemuda yang kelihatan ganas berada dekat dengan si Telinga. si Hensem pegi dekat diorang. Mamat ni memang ganas gila - berkulit gelap pekat bermata merah bergigi kuning siap ada sumbing sikit bermuka tak shave bersuara serak. Nama dia Black - konfem ganas. Dia bawak satu sling bag yang tak tau ada apa kat dalam. Lepas bayar duit kaset, si Hidung join diorang.

"Camni, aku nak mintak tolong korang sikit" Black memulakan bicara
"Tolong apa bang" si Telinga menjadi wakil kawan-kawannya.
"Aku nak bawak ada sorang budak ni pegi klinik. Aku dengan member-member aku baru lepas belasah dia tadi. (belasah = tanda keganasan. 3 sekawan patut takut). Tapi duit tak cukup. So nak mintak tolong korang sikit la. Kalau kau tak percaya, nak tengok, boleh, diorang ada kat bawah. Tapi aku tak jamin la keselamatan korang kalau korang turun bawah nanti (tanda keganasan 2). Ada member aku sorang tu baru keluar penjara (tanda keganasan 3) takut dia naik angin je nanti."
3 sekawan masih blur. Black menyambung,
"korang ni student ke"
"Aah" (mistake)
"sapa nama kau?" sambil tunjuk si Telinga. Si Telinga yang memang ada mod pembelit built-in dalam kepala hotak dia dengan laju menjawab, "Farid" (bukan nama sebenar - tapi skema gila nama Farid).
"Kau?" (tunjuk ke si Hensem)
"Ramli" (sama je pembelit - tapi nama matang sikit ah)
"Kau pulak?" ke arah si Hidung, dan dijawab dengan penuh ikhlas, "Husni"
"Camni la, bagi je berapa-berapa yang korang ada pun dah ok"
Dengar je "berapa-berapa pun ok", si Telinga lantas masuk tangan dalam poket kecik jeans dia nak ambik syiling emas seringgit kat dalam tu. Baru je nampak muka syiling tu sikit Black terus sound,
"Kalau takat seringgit baik kau buang dalam tong sampah. Kau ingat aku main-main ke? Nak aku bagitau member-member aku kat bawah tu? Kalau diorang yang mintak takde nak cakap baik-baik camni dah" Lah tadi kau jugak yang cakap berapa-berapa pun ok? Cuba jelir sikit lidah tu

3 sekawan dah cuak gila waktu ni. Pastu diorang cakap kat Black nak discuss kejap. Black cakap ok, so diorang pun jalan la jauh sikit dari Black. Sambil discuss diorang jalan sikit, sikit lama-lama makin jauh dari Black. Ada sorang suggest pegi kat kaunter polis kat terminal bas tu. Diorang pun turun tangga dengan laju tak tengok dah Black ada kat mana berjalan ke arah kaunter polis. Sampai je kat kaunter polis... tutup lah pulak. Sambil maki2 polis yang tak buat keje diorang cepat-cepat naik satu bas yang dah nampak macam nak jalan dah, dengan niat lari dari Black.

Sampai atas bas diorang rasa lega gila b*bi. Diorang pun pakat-pakat gelakkan Black sebab tak berjaya pau. Masing-masing seronok, siap boleh ulang balik ayat Black sound si Telinga nak bagi dia duit singgit tadi sambil gelak-gelak.

Tiba-tiba naik Black ke atas bas yang sama sambil membayar tambang. Apa lagi, pucat lesi 3 orang ni sambil pelan-pelan rendahkan kepala harap-harap kebetulan je Black naik bas yang sama. Black jalan steady... je ke belakang bas. Sekor pun tak berani angkat kepala. Si Telinga duduk sekali dengan si Hensem, si Hidung yang duduk sorang-sorang mesti cuak tak ingat punya. Nasib dia baik, Black tak duduk sebelah dia, tapi kerusi betul-betul kat belakang dia.

Perjalanan pegi Skudai yang patutnya 20 minit rasa macam 2 3 jam. Haram sepatah perkataan pun tak keluar dari mulut 3 orang ni. Masing-masing agaknya dah terbayang Black masuk tangan dalam sling bag dia tu sambil keluar pisau Rambo mintak duit kat diorang. Nak dijadikan cerita, ada orang tekan loceng sebelum sampai Skudai. Si Black bangun sambil berjalan slow-slow turun bas. 3 orang ni buat-buat tak perasan je Black dah bangun. Lepas Black turun, bas pun sambung journey pegi Skudai.

Lepas darah masuk balik dalam badan budak-budak 3 orang ni, baru la masing-masing sibuk nak bersuara, buat teori pasal insiden dengan Black tadi;
"Mesti dia tak cukup coin nak bayar tambang sampai Skudai so dia kena turun separuh jalan"
"Alah kita 3 orang dia sorang je dalam bas apa sangat dia boleh buat" Padahal tadi semua nak angkat kepala pun tak berani
"Lepas dia turun tadi aku tengok kat dia dari atas bas. Dia kenyit mata kat aku" yang ni Hidung cakap. Tak tau la betul ke tak. Rasanya dia yang paling cuak tadi takut Black duduk sebelah dia
"Ni semua Dol punya pasal la ni kalau tak mesti kita tak masuk punya kedai kaset tadi"
"Mula-mula cakap berapa pun ok, tu yang aku nak bagi seringgit tu"
"Alah entah-entah takde sapa pun kat bawah tu dia kencing je"
"Weh korang kutuk-kutuk Black ni kang tetiba turun je bas kat Skudai dia tengah tunggu mampus kita"

Mereka sampai balik ke kampus dengan selamat dan penuh lega. Kisah ini menjadi legend antara member-member diorang, kadang-kadang ada yang memandai tokok tambah bagi sedap cerita cakap Black bawak geng la, Black tu driver bas Gelang Patah tu la, dan macam-macam lagi. Sampai sekarang takde orang tau, sapa Black ni? Mat fit kah dia? Betul ke ada member dia baru keluar penjara kat bawah tu? Ada apa dalam sling bag dia tu? Betul ke dia ni manusia ganas? Apsal beratus kali pegi Larkin lepas tu tak penah jumpa dah pun? Jawapannya hanya Black dan keluarga Black sahaja yang tahu.

*notakaki 1: "Pegi Johor" ni bagi orang Johor maknanya nak pegi JB la. Bagi orang luar, pelik betul dah memang ada dalam Johor lagi nak pegi Johor, buat pejadahnya?

Still Life

2006-06-26T16:45:00.000+08:00

This site will stay dormant until the end of The World Cup, the earliest. Been busy updating the fantasy football blog. If you think you won't get annoyed by the blog, then click this link

DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU...

The One With The Annoying Radio Commercial

2006-05-24T00:18:00.000+08:00

Some commercials are catchy, some are annoying, and there are also some that simply make you go f**k!! what the ....???? Worst thing is they got stuck in your heads no matter how hard you try to delete them.

Here's one - it's radio, so I will just imagine the scenario as I feel fit.

(Di satu stall jual ikan di Pasar Borong Selangor, a screaming match is going on)

Mrs Lim: Eh, Mrs Tan! It auto cleans la!!
Mrs Tan: No lah, Mrs Lim, it ey-liminates all the bird flu vy-rus.. (still sounding very polite)
Mrs Lim: No, it auto cleans!! (gets very irritated - screams getting louder)
Mrs Tan: But I read ah, no more bird flu vy-rus, (starts losing her temper) ALL DIE WANNNN!! (sambil terkeluar anak tekak)
Mrs Lim: (not to be outdone) How many times must I tell you? IT AUTO CLEANS!!!!!
(screamed too loud - terkeluar anak tekak dengan isi2 perut sekali)

(voiceover cuts in)

This particular commercial was aired quite frequently during the last month on Mix FM. I have since switched to ERA/Hot. Ngetop beb!

Withdrawal Syndrome

2006-05-02T12:31:00.000+08:00

Just back from Cherating last weekend. Had a blast. Back at work today, but still can't do anything. I left my soul in Cherating.

And I hate this feeling...

Gila ka?

2006-03-24T17:19:00.000+08:00

They say, "Start your day with a smile"

So this one fine morning I got into the car, started the engine, bukak radio, switch to Mix FM, and lagu apa diorang play? Bad Day by Daniel Powter, pada pukul 8 pagi. Bagus betul...

Tagging Game

2006-03-24T16:30:00.000+08:00

A friend, also a sworn enemy, tagged me with this "four things" list. Here goes;

Four Jobs I've Had:
1. Football Manager in Fantasysports
2. Winning Eleven player
3. Part time futsal player
4. Football tycoon (This is a job "I've had" - in 2050)

Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over
1. Spirited Away
2. LOTR Trilogy
3. Batman Begins
4. Sleepers

Four Places I Have Lived (aku nak letak lima - suka hati aku la nak letak lapanpuluh tempat pun)
1. JW
2. KK
3. JB
4. KTH
5. KL

Four Television Shows I Loved to Watch
1. Premiership Saturday / Super Sunday
2. ESPN Sportscenter
3. EPL Highlights
4. Football Crazy/Extra/Focus

Four Places I Have Been On Vacation
1. Jejawi, Perlis
2. Kuala Kangsar, Perak
3. Cherating, Pahang
4. A very, VERY, V-E-R-Y, special place in KL (vacation doesn't necessarily mean a place far away)

Four of My Favourite Dishes
1. I eat
2. any halal food
3. as long as ada
4. KICAP

Four Websites I Visit Daily
1. Soccernet
2. Google
3. Yahoo! Mail
4. www."ehem-ehem".com

Four Places I Would Rather Be Right Now
1. In front of the TV playing WE8 on PS2
2. Old Trafford
3. Istana Kuning di Kuala Kangsar
4. Home

Four Bloggers I am Tagging
1. Ahhh banyak betul nak kena jawab. I'm not answering this one
2. Buat je la sapa2 yang nak buat. Aku tag sapa2 yang baca line ni. Buleh camtu?
3.
4.

A Trip We Went

2006-02-23T02:51:00.000+08:00

The Reunion looms nearer. Unfortunately, this year's Old Boys' Weekend will be held in mid-April, which will defeat one of the objectives of the Reunion; to gather our batchmates and storm the OBW, which is, before this year, held in June or July. On the other hand, we are pretty lucky ourselves by deciding not to hold the Reunion back in Kuala. Imagine the school having to receive pesky old boys twice in a matter of weeks. I'm pretty sure the Reunion will have to give way to OBW if that happens.

The committee members are having fun organizing. Hard work, of course, not to mention having to juggle the task with our daily jobs, but having the chance to do something you love, for people that mean a lot to you, is very satisfying. Not one meeting was adjourned without a rerun of old jokes which have been told countless times, but still sound funny. Things like the legendary cacaca-mere-cacaca, the infamous Downstaze Crew, Pilah doing a rap solo, the Nasik Order and Baharom Kamari incident, the choice we had to make between wayang and usrah, and the price of blackwar surfaced again. And of course, all those you-know-what stories which cannot be told here also got some air time. Hell, one fine weekend we even sat down for meeting from 830 to 11 pm, and then from 1 to 3.30 in the morning!

Last weekend Kichi, Tony, Adiq the Chairman and I traveled from KL to Cherating. Starting the journey at 11pm, we arrived at Fuad's VERY big house in Kuantan at around 5 am, after taking a journey that included a photo lesson from Kichi, stopping by for a break at the hillside Petronas station, enjoying maggi goreng at a mamak restaurant in Kuantan, and being stopped by a group of cops who looked like thugs. The next day we had our breakfast at Kemaman Kopitiam in Kuantan. An obviously pissed Dollah and Fadly had already waited for more than two hours at the resort when we arrived (sorry guys! really sorry). All were put aside though, when the lovely sales exec arrived and gave us a guided tour of the resort. My verdict? I just can't wait for another 2 months! This is perfect. Not you-will-be-pampered perfect, just we-gonna-rock-this-place-good perfect. Just throw away that fake "control macho" exteriors and be a bunch of crazy 17 year-olds again, and I promise you'll have the time of your life (I might be exaggerating a little bit here).

So we went back satisfied with our visit, and positively confident the event will be a success. One concern though, about a 2D1N getaway that might be too short a time to catch up with long lost friends. Sadly, that is the only time we have away from our real lives. Oh, and we had another photo lesson from Kichi on our way back to KL.

See you there!

the full set of pics can be accessed here

Malek oh Malek

2006-02-20T22:38:00.000+08:00

A friend, Malek (of Ex***race fame), left a testimonial on another friend, Nadir's Friendster page. Ok, fine. Now let's see what Malek said;

kadir left a testi on my page, so i'm returning the favour...
i can't remember much about this guy, truth to be told. it's not that he's not memorable, it's just that almost all my memories about my koleq days are pretty hazy and vague and i guess since i didn't really like it there, i've forgotten much of it as well! (perhaps our imminent reunion in cherating will remedy this...)
but i do remember the fact that he's one of the more approachable fellas at the school. he's friends with everybody (i was almost a loner, naturally) and he gave me a picture of him and me, taken on our very last day on the lawns of the dewan hargreaves.
he was a classmate of mine (i know he's in my form 5 class. can't remember the years preceding), and he can be found usually asleep in class (much like the class monitor, Ayul, and the class genius, Kazar).
he was from the Sulaiman House and took Nihon-go as his 3rd language (while i Ahmad House and lughatul-'arabiyy).
c'est tout. merci.
-malek-

Ha?? Apsal melibatkan aku sekali ni? 5 taun sekolah sama2, itu yang paling kau ingat Malek? Aku tido dalam kelas? Huhuhu... Banyak lagi sumbangan aku dalam kelas tu. Nanti bila aku ingat apa sumbangan aku selain dari tido dalam kelas, aku post kat sini. Hahaha... siut kau Malek.

Man Utd vs Benfica: Consequences

2005-12-09T00:41:00.000+08:00

Consequence number 1: I was in a VERY FOUL mood all day, which was also caused by consequence number 2. Mr Rio Ferdinand of Manchester United, your school-standard defending had cost me RM252. No I don't, and didn't, gamble.

In simple words, watching the game last night caused 'Consequence number 1' and 'Consequence number 2'. In addition, 'Consequence number 2' also contributed in creating a bigger 'Consequence number 1'.

Oh, and before I forget, I'd like to think you owe me that RM252, Rio. Please pay in full - no instalments, please.

The Reason - NOT by Hoobastank

2005-12-07T01:22:00.000+08:00

Today, I've got a reason to

- skip my lunch and travel 20+ km during lunch break;
- not pay attention during a meeting;
- not pay attention to any of my officemates;
- not play mp3s on my laptop;
- still be in considerably good mood despite the fact that my already crowded room became more crowded with the ISD people doing PC replacement;
- not hear any words coming out of anyone's mouth;
- not switch on my car radio on my way back from the office;
- not think about just anything else.

"and the reason is you......"

Turning Over A New Leaf

2005-12-04T20:27:00.000+08:00

The King is dead, long live the King - Post Office

2005-11-30T02:09:00.000+08:00

Sorry - I just couldn't resist...

The King is dead, long live the King - Post Best and Keane

2005-11-29T17:05:00.000+08:00

In reality, neither Best nor Keane has ever been regarded as a king inside Old Trafford. There were only two players who were considered as Kings of Old Trafford (no, it still doesn't count as three even if you come from Terengganu and you pronounce 'Keane' with a 'g' at the end); The original King was Denis Law, a teammate of George Best's, and Eric Cantona, some 20 years after that, was the heir to the throne.

Can they be replaced? Of course they can. Nobody is bigger than the club. (Remember the Clifford's motto, "The Ship Is More Than The Crew"? haha) The problem is how long United have to wait before that replacement will come. Rooney will now be more frequently compared to the late legend, more so after his superb performance in the last 3 games. And every midfielder signed by United after this will be tagged "the new Roy Keane".

Watched some more video footage of Best's goals before the match last night. It seemed like he could will the defenders and goalkeepers to move the wrong way, or he just have the ability to see which way they would go before the defenders themselves knew about it. Instead of shooting for goal in front of the 'keeper, he would completely outwit the whole defence and then scored with tap-ins into the empty net. There was one chipped goal which hit the underside of the bar and beat the 'keeper. van Nistelrooy very nearly succeeded in doing so himself last night, which would be a perfect tribute to the great man. The ball did hit the crossbar, but it bounced out instead of going in. Rooney paid his own tribute with his jinking runs and great performance throughout the match. The run and shot that led to the corner and the winning goal was some super stuff.

In a weird way, Keane's departure will benefit United in the long run. Instead of waiting for him to get back from injury and using Alan Smith as the cover, United will now have to double the effort of signing a new holding midfielder. Instead of delaying the transfer until Keane's contract supposed expiry, they will now be desperate to land their target (Sir AF revealed he already has his target, and will seek the club's support to get him). Also, Fergie can do away with the 5-man midfield now that Keane has gone and the tactic has lost its purpose, which was to cover for Keane's ageing legs. (Or did Keane intentionally leave so United can switch back to 4-4-1-1? How nice...) When Keane was fit, Sir AF couldn't leave him out either, because his presence alone could lift those around him. And he surely did rise to the occassion in the big games. Arsenal and Liverpool away last season come to mind. With the 5-man midfield scrapped, Rooney now moves back into the hole behind RvN, in front of the midfield pairing of Smith and Scholes. That is the place he can do the most damage, getting the ball from deep and running at defenders in full speed.

With that, I dare say the remainder of the season looks bright. Provided everyone stays fit, of course.

One legend left United, another one left this world completely, but many more are in the making. Pay attention to that boy Rooney.

my admiration towards George Best is limited to on-pitch performance. Off it, I hope it won't be the same path taken by Rooney.

The King is dead, long live the King - Post Match

2005-11-29T14:35:00.000+08:00

This post was originally posted on Friendster's blog site

The King is dead, long live the King - Post Match

Post Match: Pretty sure I said something about Rooney being the biggest influence and United hitting top form...

The King is dead, long live the King

2005-11-29T14:27:00.000+08:00

This post was originally posted on Friendster's blog site

The King is dead, long live the King

...Or rather "The Kings are dead, long live the Kings"

"The match enters the 55th minute. United are still unable to break the resistance of a stubborn Bolton Wanderers defence. Excellent through ball from Rooney, Giggs tries to outrun the defender.. penalty!! Bolton certainly don't have much to complain about, clearly a penalty and the referee was correctly positioned to see the tackle. Ruud van Nistelrooy places the ball on the spot, but under current circumstances, only one man is fit to take this kick. Up steps the prodigal son.. and he sends Jaaskelainen the wrong way!! 1-0 to United!! George Best scores his first goal since his comeback. It took 5 games, but worth all the wait"

The match took place in my living room, with United taking all three points after a 2-1 victory. Even the Winning Eleven 8's version of George Best is a great player, with ability to waltz past defenders with ease. His death closed an eventful November for United, which started with Roy Keane's outburst in an unbroadcast MUTV interview, pinpointing five teammates for not being up to the standard. The team then responded by ending Chelsea's 40-game Premiership unbeaten streak (or was it 30? - never cared) After that the news got bigger; Keano "left United by mutual consent" the Friday before the Charlton game. Next was Vodafone's decision to cut their sponsorship deal short due to their new deal with European Champions' League, although the news didn't make the top story. Keane continued to be the main headline, until the death of George Best last Friday, ending a long fight with his health.

I've never seen Best in action, bar some video snippets of the 1968 European Cup Final some time ago. Heh, I don't even know anyone who have seen the man play. My only memory of him, or actually memory related to him, was a classic no 11 United shirt with Best's name on it, worn by a guy in the LRT on the way to Bukit Jalil Stadium when United last visited Malaysia in 2001, if I'm not mistaken. There was even a signature on the shirt (I assumed it was to Best's, tak tau la if this guy signed it himself. Who would know?) So I'm in no position to judge him as the greatest, the best (THE Best, definitely), the most brilliant, or whatever -est. But consider this; United fans sang Keano's name during the Charlton match, even when he had left the club the day before, and we all know he was one hell of a player. Cantona's name still can be heard sung by the crowd during games after 8 years of his departure, and we know he was also one hell (okay, maybe more than one) of a player. So what can we understand if the crowd sing Best's name when he played his last competitive game for United in 1974? The next match will be an away fixture, so maybe we wouldn't hear the United fans so much on our TV sets. It is also ironic that United's next European match will be at Benfica's Stadium of Light, the very place a George Best-inspired United defeated the home side 5-1. Sir Matt Busby famously revealed that he instructed the team to wait for about 20 minutes and let Benfica come at them. 10 minutes after the start, United were already two goals up, courtesy of Best. He played to his liking, not one to follow instructions. No fear, perhaps. Not unlike a certain Wayne Rooney in the current squad.

I'm taking a break. United vs West Ham is coming up in 15 minutes. My prediction? Three points for United, of course. They are hitting top form, ironically after Keano's departure, which means Sir AF won't have to field a 5-man midfield to accommodate the former captain anymore. Scholes is back playing the kind of football that made him feared by defenders and 'keepers, and Rooney is rapidly becoming the biggest influence in the team. Love the run and flicked cross last week. Simply brilliant.

Chow..