58. Break!

OMG...work has been so busy since i'm back from Brunei.

Either my time management is a mess or I just don't know how to handle stress.

I've been doing OT for the past 2 weeks, and I reach home like a wreck at the end of the day.

 

Well, good news is...I'm taking a one-week break. =D

There were lots of planning to do, little arguments here and there,

and frustrations..but finally all is done..and I'm ready to go off a break tonight!

 

Yup, I'm following Nix on his working trip to Glasgow and the Hague.

But we intend to cover 2 more places - Edinburgh and Amsterdam.

We've been surfing the net exhaustively over the weekends,

searching for B&B options, attractions to see, scouring over maps,

planning our budget and schedule, the transportation ...etc..

wow, I though free-n-easy trip is supposed be to be easy?? no??

And it ain't "Free" either :P It's buring a hole in my pocket already!

(*guess I have to tighten my belt for the next month..=( yup, no more shopping for me...)

 

I'm now sitting in my office, it's raining outside...

fridays are supposed to be happy sunny days. cos it marks the end of a working week,

and people should be feeling happy to spend their time with family and friends...

"rain, rain, go away...come again but not on a friday!" :P

 

57. Friends or Foe?

This article was forwarded to me by a colleague. It advises married women to be cautious of their divorced girl friends. Many a times, we tend to sympathise with these divorcees, "inviting" them to join our own family and friends, thinking that this would help them to overcome the feeling of loneliness and live their life again.

But, if our good intentions are not appreciated, things could go awry. These girl "friends" might be invading our life, including robbing our own happiness and ruin our marriage lives.

Women these days have different beliefs, they are more liberal, independent and should I say "daring". It is sad when you seek happiness from your friend's sadness... read on...


離婚女友不要來
----------------

"好友離婚了，好心的女人普渡好友，安排好友到先生公司工作。好友心中羡慕她有一個美滿的婚姻，借一半好友的關係，在公在私都一直找老板，半推半就半勾半引的……

男人喜歡照顧無依無靠的女人，卻傷害有依有靠的身邊人。幸福不能分享，一分享就把友情和愛情給分掉了。
好朋友變成了第三者，朋友變成一輩子的仇人。如果搶人丈夫，還能如此享受遲來的幸福，那也是對自私和良知的看法不同，也許她覺得與道德無關，甚至對好友說：“你自己都管不好丈夫，怪我嗎？”

自從傳統的結構瓦解後，離婚不再是阻礙幸福的絆腳石，女人開始懂得為自己找出口，為理想也好，紅杏出牆也好，嫁給變態男人也好，突然想到早婚很笨，沒有玩夠就被家繩綁成粽子，不想受綁，覺得合不來，各走各路，女性可以很理直氣壯的就結束了婚姻，不會覺得頭低低。"

(more)

56. smart forfour arrives in malaysia

DaimlerChrysler's smart forfour is finally in Malaysia! This is a really cute car, which comes after the arrival of its sibling - smart fortwo. Here are two excerpts about this cheeky smart series...


At last, DaimlerChrysler's Smart brand has the means to transport more than a dynamic duo. There's no doubt the cheeky two-seat City has gained momentum in recent years, and the new Roadster-Coupe has the makings of a hit, but the ForFour promises to take the niche marque into the European mainstream. Despite its more conventional hatchback-sedan body style, the ForFour embodies everything that has made the City coupe a cult status symbol: Spartan-yet-cool cabin treatments, bare-metal structure with plastic body panels, and zingy-yet-frugal powertrain options (three- and four-cylinder engines, ranging from 74 to 107 horsepower, matched to either a traditional five-speed manual gearbox or a six-speed "Softouch Plus" manu-matic). The interior offers myriad configurations for passengers and cargo, and the pricing starting at 12,990 euros. should make it a real player in a segment dominated by such heavy hitters as the Nissan Micra, the Mini Cooper, and the Volkswagen Lupo.

AutomobileMag

The forfour was introduced in 2004. Unlike its little "brother", this is a more conventional car, a real hatchback supermini with a roomy interior, and four- or five-seater configuration.

The car is produced at the NedCar factory in the Netherlands in conjunction with Mitsubishi Motors. The factory is the same, which produced Volvo 340 cars in 1970s and 1980s. To save production costs, the smart forfour shares most of its components with the 2003 Mitsubishi Colt, including chassis, suspensions and a new generation of MIVEC petrol engines, three- and four-cylinder, ranging from 1.1 to 1.5 L with power up to 80 kW (109 PS). The 1.5 L cdi diesel engine, on the contrary, is a three-cylinder Mercedes-Benz engine derived from the four-cylinder of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class.

A Brabus-prepared sports version is available since 2005. It is powered by a turbocharged Mitsubishi 4G15 engine, developing 130 kW (177 PS), 27 PS more than its "brother", the Mitsubishi Colt CZT. It can reach a maximum speed of 221 Km/h and accelerate up to 100 Km/h in 6.9 seconds.

Wikipedia

Check out the smar fortwo here! It looks cute ain't it?

55. Arkadius Goggles

ARKADIUS GOGGLES - London-based designer Arkadius is launching his accessories range worldwide this summer – and these revolutionary Goggles are set to be the next big thing in eyewear.

The collection includes sunglasses and opticals that feel as light as a feather, yet are almost unbreakable – made from premium-quality polarised steel. In his own words: eyewear should feel weightless – it should feel as though you aren’t wearing anything. He has certainly succeeded. Twelve different styles are available in three different colour combinations. £120-£150 ($240-$260) http://www.arkadius.com/

Locally, Arkadius Goggles can be found in Paris Miki outlets and Reliance Optical in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

Future Design Days www.arkadius.com Ogling Arkadius

55. Intro to Tarot

This is translated from the Tarot chinese booklet belonging to my sis' friend.

"Tarot card is an ancient form of fortune reading, the history of it stretches back thousand years ago. Some say that it originated from the Gypsies, some believed it was from Egypt. Well, it doesn't matter where it came from. What matters is how the tarot cards can help us in our life. However, one should not believe that tarot card reading is the ultimate truth and the only way to solve your problems. It is just a means or tool to seek further what's going on around us and in our minds, and try to analyse the situation to find a solution.

A tarot card set usually has 72 cards that include 22 cards representing virtues and vices and death and fortune etc. The cards may be dealed in 2 ways, Major Arcana and Minor Arcana sets.

Major Arcana is the most common used set, it has 22 cards. Major Arcana describes your life, as each card represents a part of your life.
0- The Fool
1- The Magician
2- The High Priestess
3- The Empress
4- The Emperor
5- The Hierophant
6- The Lovers
7- The Chariot
8- Strength
9- The Hermit
10- Wheel of Fortune
11- Justice
12- Hanged Man
13- Death
14- Temperance
15- The Devil
16- The Tower
17- The Star
18- The Moon
19- The Sun
20- Judgement
21- The World


Minor Arcana set has 56 cards, which are generally categorised into Wands, Cups, Pentacles, Swords cards. The categories also represent the four major elements - Fire, Water, Wind, Earth. Minor Arcana focuses more on the minor details of the situation/problem.

Generally, Major Arcana has greater influence over the Minor Arcana."

54. A Dialogue on Tarot Cards

Happened to saw a pack of Tarot cards lying on my desk. Found out that my lil sis borrowed it from her friend. So I decided to explore this tarot card thingy. The conversation went something like this...

 

"lil sis, where you get this pack of cards? is it your friend's?"

 

"huh? oh...yah...i borrowed it."

 

"so, do you know how to play it?"

 

"erm...little bit, there are so many ways to go about it and read your fortune..depends on which you want.."

 

"ok, show me the easiest one la.."

 

"ok...you see this booklet here...neh...there are so many ways to choose your cards...see which one you want la..erm...I show you this first one la..it's the easiest."

 

"Ok, so how you start?"

(sis started shuffling the cards and laying the cards faced down on the table)

 

"pick 3 cards la...but don't turn the cards over..give them to me"

(picked 3 cards)

 

"ok...see the picture in the book there?...so we place the cards like this..just like the picture...then you flip them over...oh, forgot to tell you that you have to first think of what you wish to know...ok, you think first..."

(ting ting!!...career move would be good question)

 

"ok...u ready? we flip the cards."

 

"some of the cards are upside down...is it the same one ar? does it matter?"

 

"oh...it's ok, we can't flip it ...it's the way the cards are played..because we have different interpretations for it."

 

"oh...ok...so how do we read the cards? according to the numbers in the book?"

 

"aa...yah...so you see this number here...so we flip to that page and look for the number in the page...aa...neh...so you see the card is upside down rite? you read the one that says for upside down one la..if the card is right side up, then you read the other one..like that loh..."

 

"oh...ok...sounds easy...oklah..I go play around with it myself...and see how it works..."

(end of conversation)

 

53. Comments Spammer

It's great when some one really does visit your blog and leaves interesting comments. But it can be annoying when it comes from automated system adding comments to your blog. Apparently, yen's and my blog have just been hit by these nasty spammers >(

Lucky thing, Blogger has this feature to block out these unwanted spams. Read here for guide to turn on this feature for your blog. Hope it really helps to keep unwanted spammers at bay.

Turn on the word verification feature

Keeping Comments Clean

52. Mythical Mallika Sherawat

This is one hot lady..Mallika Sherawat that is.
This hot siren is acting in Jackie Chan's latest movie - The Myth.
Apparently she's no newcomer to controversies and bold talk.
In India where sex is still a taboo on screens, and a hush-hush topic,
it is rare to have a lady bold enough to bare and talk about it.

"Struggling to acquire the tag of India's sex symbol,
Mallika Sherawat has virtually dropped her clothes to clinch the 'coveted'(?) title.
Mallika started out as a small-time model and actress from Delhi
called Reema Lamba before she re-christened herself Mallika Sherawat
(the second name is reportedly her maiden one).
The rumour is that she was already married to one, Capt. Gill from Delhi,
but sadly, the marriage didn't exactly work! (source)"

Her movies have been controversial.
- She kissed the male actor 17 times - kissing scenes never existed in Bollywood movies.
- She had a topless scene in The Myth - gasp!


Date of birth (location) : 24 October 1981, India

Bollywood actresses are getting bolder by day!
Check out some of her photos...

51. Toyota Fasso (fatso??)

Here're some pictures of Toyota's car - Fasso which were forwarded to me. The car bears similarity to our very own Myvi but with sportier looks. Check them out!

50. Refund for early road tax payers

First the government announced road tax deductions for vehicles in Malaysia to lighten the burden of the increasing petrol price.

Now, they are saying there's a refund for early road tax payers! Wow...even though the deduction is little, but it sure
is a happy news to everyone. And I bet mom would be delighted as well, as she has paid her road tax in advanced. =)

But the down side of it is, as always with the government bureaus, and the big volume of people, these refunds is always troublesome and take time to process. Anyway kudos to the government for such considering thought!

49. Raising Lanterns, Eating Mooncakes

It's that time of the year again.
The Lantern Festival (or Mid-Autumn Festival) falls on 18th Sept this year.
According to the Lunar calendar, the festival is on the 15th day of the eighth month.
The Chinese believe that the moon would be at its fullest on this night.
(*wonder how the ancient chinese actually notice the variance in size..hmm...)

Chanced upon this interesting site from Taiwan.
It tells about the origins and legends of this festival and also some other traditional festivals.
It's quite an interesting site to explore, you may find out things that you never knew!
Here are 2 links to read about...

Enjoying the Wind and Moon Together -- Mid-Autumn Festival

Lantern Festival

The best part of this festival must be the mooncakes and playing with candles and lanterns.
Though I'm quite grown up and seldom indulge in candles and lanterns fun,
but I still find them interesting and pretty to look at.
Lighting up around your house compound really brings out the festivity mood.
And you'll notice children walking around your neighbourhood with lanterns at night,
days before the festival!

The best place to immerse in the festivity mood would be paying a visit to the Chinese villages (xin chun).
The Chinese community there would be busy praying to the moon goddess,
the adults eating mooncakes while sipping tea,
and the children would be having fun playing with lanterns and candles.
So much fun thinking back my memories of childhood.

These days, mooncakes are getting more varied in tastes and looks.
And not surprisingly, the prices are shooting up!
I just can't agree with those high prices, a mooncake nowadays would cost around RM10!
What used to be a delicacy for celebrating, has now become a pricey once-a-year indulgent and splurge.
Lucky for me, dad has some mooncakes gifts from business partners and friends.. =P
(*Hmm...mentioning of mooncakes makes me hungry for some...)

Let the fun begins!...muahahaha...!! :))

48. Bank Negara to withdraw RM1 coin from Dec 7

Heard from the news that the RM1 coin will be withdrawn from circulation from Dec 7.  

A Bank Negara statement yesterday confirmed that the coin would cease to be legal tender from that date. 

“The public can exchange the coins at face value without any charge at all commercial banks from Sept 7 to Dec 6... (read more)"

So for those who used to collect those RM1 coins, please take note and change them before the due date before your $$ become worthless.

 

 

47. Fear is not a factor!

Is fear a factor for you?
Apparently it isn't for these bunch of guys participating in Malaysia first ever Fear Factor challenge...


And oh my god! I see Nix among them! And I thought he keeps his distance away from cockroaches and all creepy crawlies.. =P

46. Lonely women pester Malaysia firemen

This was forwarded to me by Nix. It's interesting to know that our very own Malaysian firemen seem very appealing to the lonely women out there =P  And here I was thinking this 911 aftermath only happen to New York fire fighters! My, my...anyone out there interested to do some fire fighting?

 

"The enduring sex appeal of firefighters is causing problems for Malaysia's emergency services. The country's head of civil defence says 97% of calls to the emergency number are either hoaxes or non-urgent. Many of the calls, Jamal Arafin said, were from lonely women who had decided to dial a hunk..."

 

Read the full article

 

 

45. Bibliomania

What's Bibliomania?
Well, it's a website for free online literature and study guides recommended to me by my colleague.

There are many nice stories to read including classics. The cons of it is you can't download the entire story as a PDF file. You have to read it online or download them as HTML pages, chapter by chapter.

Anyway, I think that it's still a good source for free stories to while your time away!

Visit Bibliomania..