My Blog

"River of dreams" song , by Billy Joel ....

2012-02-12T11:57:00.003+08:00

Topic : Billy Joel song, River of dreams

I heard this song in the radio recently, it brought back certain memories of my childhood, same like songs like Toto's Africa , and "The Lion sleeps tonight".....

Medical packages for general health screening in SDMC & KPJ

2011-12-31T01:35:00.000+08:00

Topic : Medical packages for general health screening in Kajang / KL / Malaysia , SDMC, SJMC, KPJ

I wanted to send my wife for a general health screening . As such, I did a quick research on the available medical packages in Sime Darby Medical Center & the KPJ chain of medical centres. I concentrated on 2 of these established medical centre companies as I have been to the medical screening before and I believe they do a good job.

		SDMC Subang Jaya*			KPJ (all branches)
No.	Items	Basic Fit 1	Basic Fit 2	Basic Fit Lady	General Exec. Screening	General Exec. Screening Plus
	TESTS
1	BMI, Weight Hip ratio	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
2	Body composition analysis	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
3	Visual acuity	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
4	Medical history	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
5	Blood pressure	Yes (post)**	Yes (post)**	Yes (post)**	Yes	Yes
6	Lung function test	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
7	Stress Test (treadmill)	No	No	No	No	Yes
8	Resting ECG	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
9	Chest XRAY	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
10	General screening profile (BLOOD TEST CHECKUP)	BASIC	REGULAR	BASIC	GENERAL	COMPREHENSIVE
11	Pap smear (THIN prep)	No	No	Yes	No	No
	FOLLOWUP
12	Post examination review	Yes	Yes	Yes	Unknown	Unknown
13	Medical report	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
14	Risk assessment, scoring	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
	PRICE
15	Price (RM) as of date above***	400.00	470.00	495.00	234.00	549.00

* Price apply to SDMC Subang Jaya only. Different price applies to other branches.
** Blood pressure measured during followup session
*** Following rate of USD 1.00 = RM 3.00

References :
a) http://www.simedarbyhealthcare.com/medical-services/packages/general-health
b) http://www.kpjhealth.com.my/health-tourism-packages.php

Two leaders on one ship dilemma

2011-12-18T15:15:00.001+08:00

Topic : Star Trek, Jean Luc, Riker, 2 leaders in one ship

One of the memorable episodes I remember of Star Trek is the "The Best of Both Worlds" episode, part 1 & 2.
Eventhough it represents one of the most important episodes & turning point for the Star Trek Enterprise universe, it also highlights an interesting dilemma, involving having 2 leaders on one ship.

Captain Jean Luc Picard is the captain of the Federation flagship starship 'Enterprise', with his First Officer Commander Riker. If the Captain is away or in a state of inability to lead, the First Officer will take charge of the ship.

I would say both are leaders in their own right, with different styles.

However, Riker's abilities are often overshadowed by the Captain's leadership , and has no proper opportunity to shine and show his leadership prowess.

In the episode "The Best of Both Worlds" , the Captain is abducted by the Borg and Riker was assigned to helm the 'Enterprise'. The Borg are a semi-robotic race, and will destroy civilisation , and assimilate the civilians to semi-robotic state and obey the central command. Since the civilians are assimilated, the Borg gain their knowledge as well. Their superior technology & weapons are easily overcome & destroy the Federation starships , which was a challenge to face. The Borg was heading to Earth with the goal to destroy the starship fleet and assimilate everyone on Earth.

Riker suddenly has a big load to carry , as :
a. he has to now lead the 'Enterprise' to rescue the Captain and save Earth
b. put aside his feelings for the possibility of losing his Captain in the process of battling the Borg
c. plan a way to destroy the Borg & halt their progress to Earth , at the same time rescuing the assimilated Captain
d. plan an attack which requires uncommon tactics as their initial attack plan is now known to the Borg via the assimilated Captain

Despite overwhelming odds against Riker, he managed to rescue the Captain and get his team to devise a way to destroy the Borg ship ( via a sleep-mode bug ).

He proved that he can lead a big mission. This would not be possible if the Captain was still there. The event gave an opportunity for Riker to show is true skills as a leader, which was hidden all this while, limited by his First Officer ranking. And this opened the Captain's eyes ..........

The 'Enterprise' had actually 2 leaders ...............

About jogging ...

2011-11-20T01:39:00.001+08:00

Topic : parenting comic, My Blog comic, jogging comic

This is one of my dilemma I have when decide to go jogging ...... HEHE !

ENJOY !

Adithya habits, my new parenting comic ....

2011-11-13T15:52:00.001+08:00

Topic : parenting comic, My Blog comic, parenting toddlers, toddler antics, toddler behavior

My son ( who will be 2 years old ) has developed a habit. When he does a mistake ( dropping things, pouring water on table, accidentally bumping into people, etc) he ignores it and tries to change the topic. He acts like nothing happened. He may remedies it by picking up the item , or cleaning the mess or saying sorry... but sometimes he doesn't do so, even when told to do so by me or my wife.

For example, in the case of accidentally pouring water on the floor, he will try to change the topic and divert our attention elsewhere. We would ask him why he did that. He usually does not answer anything. We would tell & console him to say sorry and not to do it again , and we would give him a cloth so he can clean the mess he made. We will insist , even if it makes him want to cry.

I have also made a comic strip as below, to illustrate the point.

I am planning to make periodic comic about parenting and the interesting events of our parenthood with our son Adithya.

The comic below is the first one, and more improvements will be made to the comic , as I am still trying to improve it. Current software tools used include GIMP , Inkscape, Picture Collage Maker ( for image resizing ), and Pencil.

ENJOY !

My 1year 11months old son ... and the world reaches 7billion !

2011-11-03T22:23:00.001+08:00

Topic : About today events 3/Nov/2011, world population

My son is now 1year 11months+, he is a wonder. He is now saying all kinds of words. He now says "Thank you" everytime we give him food or something else.

He now also says :
- Orange light ( referring to the outside light post colour )
- Green means ...... GOOOO ! ( referring to the traffic lights)
- Red means ...... STOP ! ( referring to the traffic lights)
- Upstairs (referring to bring him downstairs)
- Daddy, open ..... (referring to opening the biscuit can)
- Mummy , big lorry (referring to trailers on the road)

...... and so much more !

I also heard news yesterday that the world is estimated to have reached human population 7billion mark with the birth of a Filipino baby.
Human population is growing but can the Earth support us?
The Earth was never designed to support this much of us .........

Before the advance of medicine back in the 19th century, the human population was less than 1billion ( Based on Wikipedia , human population is estimated to have reached 1billion only in the year 1804 ). Even today, there is constant erosion of natural resources ( does the recent illegal logging in the BELUM Forest reserve ring a bell? ).

What kind of world will our children inherit?

It is a constant worry for all parents , I am sure ......

Tembak Kastam?

2011-10-29T00:31:00.001+08:00

Topic : Funny spelling mistake in signboard

I was driving home one day this month, when I bumped into one signboard at the traffic light post near Kajang Prima.It reads as "Menembak KASTAM". Very odd and funny spelling mistake......

September 2011 : Travel month

2011-10-09T16:00:00.001+08:00

Topic : Travel, Family trips

For last month, the whole family travelled to twice to 2 places :

Date : Sept 16 ~ 18, 2011 ( Friday ~ Sunday )
To : Pulau Pinang , Kulim
Purpose : Sheilla's friend wedding in Kulim, relaxation, enjoy Pulau Pinang food & attractions

Date : Sept 24 ~ 25, 2011 ( Saturday ~ Sunday )
To : Ipoh , Tambun Lost World
Purpose : Sheilla's company team event + relaxation , enjoy Ipoh food

It's been a great month of travel. :-) . Adithya has some fun too, enjoying the view and learning new things.....

Rumah Aman charity home

2011-09-10T16:48:00.002+08:00

Nuffnang recently highlighted about the Rumah Aman , a charity home under the TLC company (Truly Loving Company).

Excerpt from NuffNang :

"Rumah Aman is an orphanage located in Shah Alam, with complete facilities to care for poor boys who are orphaned or from needy families. The home began operations in 2005, and currently houses 30 boys of various ages. There, the children are provided with education, clothing, food and shelter. Their mission is simple – to give the best to the children, like other parents would for their children."

Currently , they need help to replace their 15 year-old electricity wiring and lightning breaker system, due to wear & tear , plus previous lightning strikes.

Looking at the children in the Rumah Aman, they are a striving lot. They have a bright future and make a change in their lives, as long as the home can provide the basic facilities to live and study , such as food, water & power.

I was compelled to write this blog as few weeks ago, I read the news that there is 300,000 orphans in Malaysia. Also highlighted was the story of a girl who had to stay in an orphanage because her mother cannot take care of her.

You see, this girl had a normal family with 3 other siblings. One day, her father was involved in an accident and passed away. Her dad being the lone breadwinner , her mother cannot earn enough to take care all the children. So she took care of 2 of them , sent one of them to uncle's house and sent this girl to the Welfare Department , to this orphanage.

Her family visits every month, but she must have went through a lot of grief and sadness . I cannot imagine myself in her shoes. Her story deeply struck me.

So , please donate if you can. Give back to society. See the links below for details :

NUFFNANG.COM.MY : TLC Promise Me – For the Children of Rumah Aman

Raya holiday week recap

2011-09-03T17:22:00.002+08:00

It is already Saturday (3/Sept/11).

Just a recap of this week activities ( Raya holidays week + school holiday )...

Had a trip to MidValley for shopping with my wife, Adithya , my in-laws, and sister-in-law.....

Spent time taking care of my son , as he was enjoying his new couch (thanks to my wife ! :-) )......

Celebrated mother-in-law's birthday .....

Mum excited to see Adithya last Sunday .....

What a great week !

:-)

Our bad experience in Baskin Robbins Metropoint Kajang (3/Sept/11, 3pm)

2011-09-03T16:30:00.004+08:00

My wife went to order ice cream at Baskin Robbins outlet at Metropoint Kajang around 3pm today (3/Sept/11). After purchasing the ice creams, my wife took a look inside the paper bag and noticed the cups had no top cover and was stacked one on top of the other. Which means, the bottom of one of the cups is touching the top uncovered other cup, so unhygenic ! My wife was furious and queried one of the staff there. The staff did not bother to listen and actually turned his back at my wife ! So rude ! One other staff told my wife that the top cover for the cups are finished and no stock. Does that mean Baskin Robbins can still give customers unhygenic ice creams ?

I was totally shocked by this ! What kind of staff they have , they dont even have basic customer response etiquette?

FYI, this is not the first time I had bad experience with Baskin Robbins Metropoint Kajang. I ordered cake from them last year, and they ruined it by misspelling the word BIRTHDAY.

I am not going back to Baskin Robbins again, having staff with no basic manners. My Saturday is ruined ! AARRGGHH !

>:-(

This is how it was in the paperbag, one on top of the other, with no top cover...... ugh

This is how it was in the paperbag, one on top of the other, with no top cover...... ugh (2nd shot with flash)

I wonder what's the ice block for...? Notice the top cup had some paper cover, and the bottom cup had no cover at all .......

My brand new Samsung Galaxy Ace

2011-08-18T10:10:00.003+08:00

I got myself a Samsung Galaxy Ace worth RM800+.

It has a 3.5inch screen, it was like "Wow so big" reaction.

More updates will appear in my blog as I explore the phone features and restore my old phone data.
A lot of difference from Nokia Symbian and Android...

Thank you to my dear wife who bought me the phone. ;-)

Gold investment account–Malaysia

2011-08-08T23:56:00.001+08:00

My wife told me a few days ago , that gold prices have reached more the RM160 mark. I could not believe it as gold prices were just below RM100 back in the late 2007 , when I was buying jewellery for our wedding.

As such, I did a bit of research on any possible type of gold investment . As I found out , 2 local banks offer Gold Investment Accounts, where you can buy gold in the form of investment purchase, and keep in your account. You do not have to buy gold physically, all that is handled by the bank.

These banks are :

a) Maybank Gold Investment Account
b) Public Bank Gold Investment Account

3 interesting traits of these 2 banks, in terms of requirements :

Fees	Both banks charge stamp duty fee for first registration, sales fee when selling , and have different sell and buy prices (which is not far from gold price).
Initial Investment	Maybank has initial investment requirement of 1 gram, but Public Bank needs 20 gram. This makes it more affordable to buy gold investment via Maybank. Well, a lot of people have Maybank accounts.... so no issue.
Online transaction	Maybank only allows transactions to be done at branches via the account passbook, but Public Bank allows both passbook and online transactions to be done.

Trip to parents home in Sungai Pelek (16/July/11)

2011-08-06T07:05:00.009+08:00

We travelled to Sungai Pelek on the Saturday (16/July/11) to my parents place in Sungai pelek.

Mum was there , happy to see Adithya who is now 1 year and 8 months.

Adithya was excited to so much room for him to play ! He runs around the house, with a big smile on his face .....

Mum made some 'Kuih gulung' or they call it 'Kuih Ketayap' in Terengganu. I loved to eat it when I was young, those days I could finish 10 of them in 10 minutes !
Mum makes it differently, homemade style, so it good compared to stalls.

Took Adithya for a stroll on the road, he was enjoying it, while teasing on the neighbourhood dogs.

By 6pm, we all went to the Sungai Pelek Saturday night market (pasar malam), and got some food for dinner. I got some fried spicy chicken, while my wife bought the usual rojak buah , and soya drink.

Left Sungai Pelek to Kajang in the evening, after our trip to Sungai Pelek Saturday night market (pasar malam).

My hometown Teluk Intan

2011-08-03T23:47:00.002+08:00

This is an article about great food in my home town , Teluk Intan :

TheStar.com.my : Teluk Intan – rich in food history

The Last Flight of Atlantis ….

2011-07-27T00:13:00.000+08:00

I was sad to find out that the NASA space shuttle is ending …..

Guardian.co.uk : Space shuttle Atlantis lands at Cape Canaveral for the last time

Superb Bhangra hit from movie "Jab We Met"

2011-07-15T09:45:00.006+08:00

I saw the Bhangra hit "Nagada Baja" from movie "Jab We Met", and it was superb. Makes you want to stand up and dance... :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dByGa95Kuec

My 2cents on the BERSIH demo in KL on 9/July/2011

2011-07-15T09:35:00.002+08:00

I would just say this :

a) Having demonstration will NOT achieve anything, it only encourages violence & someone will get hurt
b) Past experience with such demonstration rallies shows people getting emotional and do not achieve the purpose of the rally in the first place
c) So why bother making a rally? Why not just send the message peacefully? We have different types of media and channels that can convey the message .

Kudos to HSBC Semenyih branch !

2011-07-13T22:29:00.002+08:00

Hi all,

I had a revision letter from the Inland Revenue dept (LHDN) , asking me to give 1 year financial statement for my home loan account since I declared deduction for it in my income tax declaration for last year.

So I went to HSBC Semenyih branch since my home loan is from HSBC bank. I discussed the request with Ms.Normalinda, who applied for the request to HQ . She told me that these requests will take 10 working days . I needed it soon as I had a deadline for the revision of my income tax declaration.

I followed up every 2 days , until I got it yesterday ( total duration to wait was 1 week ). I was impressed as they did based on less the time required, follow up with HQ and was patient with my followups.

My kudos to Ms.Normalinda, Ms.Sun Lee Li , and Mr. Freddie Kwong from HSBC Semenyih, for the help. I had good customer experience with HSBC.

Thank you HSBC !

This was important to me as I had many bad experiences with other banks, the major ones as follows :

a) I applied to change my billing / statement sending address for my Maybank account , but never changed/revised eventhough I tried 4 times in the past one year. I had arguments with the operators on this.

b) I applied to change my billing / statement sending address for my RHB account , but never changed/revised eventhough I tried 3 times already

:-)

Shia LaBeouf - Quitting Transformers ?

2011-07-12T23:56:00.005+08:00

I received news that Shia LaBeouf , the main actor in the Transformers movie series , will not participate in acting anymore in any future Transformer movies.

I was like " Ah man... come on !". Why dont you just continue and be in that franchise?

If they keep changing actors / actresses ( as they did with Megan Fox) , the series will not have consistency in the character personality. I am used to seeing Shia as the main character, I don't think anyone else can bring that desperateness & emotional vibe to the character like Shia.

Oh well........ nothing lasts forever.

Nestle Bliss yogurt drink! Yumm! #nestlebliss

2011-05-14T06:36:00.000+08:00

I love taking Nestle Bliss, especially the strawberry flavour! It is a healthy yogurt drink. A bit on the sweet side though. #nestlebliss

An outstanding dance from an engineering student from India ...

2010-12-30T00:03:00.005+08:00

My wife showed me a link , to a video showing an outstanding dance from an engineering student from India . It was part of the India's Got Talent show. Take a look , an amazing dance piece with matching Hindi song soundtrack ...

Link :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9GyT6UYRHY

Supplement for Adithya

2010-09-11T06:31:00.004+08:00

For the past few months (every month), my son Adithya has been getting flu , cough, or fever. As such , a trip to the peadiatrician is now a monthly affair. Not to mention the cost of the medicine. My recent trip cost me RM100, since the clinic given us a special antibiotic with cocktail of other medicines for cough, flu, and phlegm.

As recommended by my in-laws, I introduced the Seven Seas Multivitamin Syrup to Adithya , to boost his immune system. He has been taking it for a week now, and need to monitor him for any improvement on terms of health.

http://www.sevenseas.com.my/multi_vitamins_01.htm

Another funny Benson & Hedges commercial ...

2010-09-10T00:42:00.001+08:00

I found another Benson & Hedges , old 1970s commercial, which I find to be funny ... Check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-jKrLq0BWU

Memorable commercials ...

2010-09-10T00:33:00.002+08:00

One of commercials I remember when I was young (in the 1980s), is one that has a running golden lion, from Benson & Hedges. That specific commercial stuck in my mind , as it one of the first CGI commercials, and it was the first time I saw a CGI commercial.

I was trying to find a video of that commercial for some time, until I found it in Youtube , with a link below. Short commercial but memorable .......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdBoKOpctp4

My review on Raavanan movie

2010-06-23T18:43:00.003+08:00

"VEEERAAA.... VEERA ..... VEERA,VEERA, VEERA....." . Sorry , got carried away with theme song. The theme song from the new Mani Ratnam movie, Raavanan.

Me & my wife had the chance to see it in theatres , and I personally liked how the story parallels in many ways to Ramayana epic. The ending was twisted and suprising.

My opinion is that Mani Rathnam put Vikram in two roles ( as hero in Hindi version Raavan, and as villain somewhat in Tamil version Raavanan), not only to put Vikram acting ability to spotlight. He did so , to show that any one person is not born as bad person, but circumstances turn them to become bad. Hence , the actor Vikram ( same person) in 2 different roles ( 2 different circumstances).

Nutrilite supplements from Amway

2010-06-20T01:17:00.004+08:00

Before I start, I would like to mention that I am not a AMWAY organisation member, in any way what so ever. With that out of the way, I would like to highlight my experience in using the Nutrilite supplement in my daily life.

Amway Malaysia supplement website :
http://www.amway2u.com/mall_prodlst.jsp?cat1=1000&cat2=1010

I started taking "Nutrilite Daily" supplement since 2 weeks now, and I have to say that I feel better and some positive difference.

- feel more energetic, or more precisely , alert
- more active mind
- feel less sleepy in the morning run (meaning you don't drag yourself to work with a sleepy face, no more)
- I seem to accomplish more things now than I did before, due to a more alert mind

The effect is actually partly described as above, you have to try it, to believe it.
I used to take VitaHealth supplements previously, and it had the same vitalising effect, back in my school days.

Thank you , Nutrilite !

A trip to parents place - Sungai Pelek 13/June/2010, and the ruined lake ....

2010-06-16T23:49:00.000+08:00

I had a trip back to parents place in Sungai Pelek (Taman Pantai Sepang Putra), not far from KLIA, and home of the famous Sepang Gold Coast. My 6months+ old son, Adithya had a great time with my parents, making sounds and discovering new wind chyme sounds.... the whole place was a sensory festival for him.

I bought the ABC ice kacang, and the cendol , from Sungai Pelek town for my wife & mum. Those would go well as dessert, on a great sunny Sunday .... yum.

They just love the sweet icy treat , sold by the Indian lady in town. Her stall sits at the T junction in the middle of town, opposite the 7-Eleven store.

However, I was disheartened to find out that the lake (Tasik Cempaka) behind my parents house, was still filled with plant overgrowth. The housing areas (Taman Pantai Sepang Putra) has several lakes, including Tasik Cempaka. It used to be clean and clear enough water for fishing.

The mess has been like this for months (even this year until now). Complaints to the site office obviously fell on deaf ears .... This is not good for tourists to the nearby Gold Coast & Pantai Bagan Lalang, as the lake faces the main road, and gives bad impression for passer-bys.

I hope the authorities take some action soon, or the lake will become an eye-sore to both tourists & residents ( or maybe it already has).

Unforgettable moments in life ...

2010-06-13T11:40:00.000+08:00

I was thinking today about moments which was unforgettable in my life, and I thought of writing it in my blog. So here it goes (as chronologically as possible) :

1) UPSR
Had taken a major exam for first time in life. Also found out how average results can get parents upset. Ouch !

2) My first computer, Amstard 1640 8086 processor
My dad went all out to buy us a computer back in December 1989. It was Amstard 1640. It was one of those floppy disk booted PC (those were the days) . It was from here , I was exposed to BASIC programming and script commands. It was the building blocks that started my interest in computers.... It was also used to play games & bets against my twin brother & sister. Thanks Dad.

3) Britannia encyclopedia, medical encyclopedia
My dad also bought the family a whole set of the Britannia Encyclopedia volume set. It was 34 book set encyclopedia. And it was not cheap ... All for knowledge.

4) My first telescope
I still remember when me & my twin brother Ganesh, came home evening from school on the 17th July 1994, against a full moon. I was shocked, beyond words. What I saw was a white reflector telescope in my backyard ! Dad bought it without my knowledge, as I had shown intense interest in astronomy that time. I was able to show them all the planets and the closeup of the moon, which shocked my parents, as I was already using the telescope proficiently without any training.

5) Compuquiz 1996
Me, my brother, and another friend Tham Choon Wei represented the school (HMSS - Horley Methodist Secondary School, Teluk Intan) for the Compuquiz 1996 competition. We were the pioneer team for our school. We didn't make past the first round, but at least we tried.

6) Audi 100 GLS family car
The whole family had some great memories in that day. Miss that car :_-(

7) School Sports Day February 1999
I was very happy that my sports team won 1st place in the School Sports Day 1999 ( I was the vice captain of team Harimau Kumbang ). I managed to get points for the team in the athletics event too.

8) STPM & the reward : Trip to Sumatra
I prepared & studied hard for STPM, I have to admit, I didn't study this hard for my SPM.
After that last exam in December 1999, I felt released, alive !
After that , I had a 6months holiday. I followed Dad to his work place in Sumatra, near a town called Muara Bungo. It was a eye-opener, especially since I had to spend the new year and new millenium in a remote forest area oil palm plantation estate, with crickets and insects!

9) My first day in University of Malaya
Blown away , starting my university life with students from across Malaysia. A totally new experience in my life. Felt like a lost deer. And then came the seniors orientation ........

10) My first day at work (17/Sept/2003)
My first day at work in Hitachi Electronic Products (M) Sdn Bhd. Got to learn the mechanics of working in a Japanese manufacturing plant.

11) My first car - Proton Waja 1.6
Ahh ... my first taste of freedom. That car had some real raw engine power, but a fuel gustler.

12) The day I met my wife - 16/Sept/2006
It was an ordinary day, but a sudden decision to go for a graduation ceremony in Bukit Jalil, changed my life, and brought me to meet my future wife. Thank you Priya, for introducing me to my future wife !

13) My first date
It was beautiful, and my hands were trembling holding her hands. Wow ...

14) Engagement & wedding days
It was some of the happiest days of my life. A lot of people I care worked hard to make the ceremony a success.

15) Honeymoon
The trip to Bali was wonderful. I put all my thoughts behind, and enjoyed 5 days in Bali with my wife. Beautiful Bali, beautiful wife, sumptous food (glutinous rice i reject though), rich culture & vibrance .... more than I imagined :-)

16) The day we found out my wife pregnancy with Adithya
I was happy when I found out that my wife We organised a dinner in Fortuna Palace , Kajang, as a treat to both our families. We also had a hidden agenda, that is to announce that my wife was pregnant. When I announced, everybody suddenly jumped for joy ! An eruption ....

17) Adithya's birthday - 22/Nov/2009
Holding my 3.59kg son on that day, I was speechless. He was a delicate young baby ... Magical. Truly no words to describe it.

Remembering my honeymoon trip to Bali ...

2010-06-12T22:07:00.000+08:00

I remembered about my honeymoon trip to Bali , after our wedding on 20th January 2008. It was a trip I will never forget. It was the only trip so far, where I forgot about everything , and immersed myself in a holiday with my newly wedded wife (eventhough I received some calls from the office :-( ).

I have to admit , it is the only holiday I keep thinking about, as it was my first overseas PERSONAL holiday ( for me , Singapore does not count as overseas ). It was the most expensive I have spent to date , for a holiday. And I made it lavish.

I chose YTL resort in Bali as our first stay, the resort accomodations & spa facilities are superbly suitable for newly-wedded couples. It was quiet, away from hustle & bustle of the cities, remote, absolutely beautiful, and was oozing with Baliness architecture. Words cannot describe the unique & tranquil experience I had there. The remoteness is perfect for people who want to forget everything , and enjoy yourself. Me & my wife were pampered in a luxurious setting, and the spa treatment is best I ever had (and also my wife have ever had) . Ahh............ felt like heaven there.

Below is a chronology of the trip :

23/Jan/2008
1.25pm - Landed in Ngurah Rai Bali airport
2.15pm - Departed (driver pickup) to YTL Spa Village Resort in Tembok Tedjakula, north Bali
5.15pm - Arrived 3hour drive in YTL Spa Village Resort
- had massage session on arrival
- had dinner & relaxed

24/Jan/2008
5.30am - Wake up (so early, yawn)
5.45am - Departed to Lovina beach with our previously arranged local tour guide Mr.Astrawan & Mr.Ketut. Had breakfast near Lovina beach. Watched dolphin swimming during boat ride in Lovina beach
10.25am - Arrived in YTL resort
Rest of the day
- had 2nd spa treatment
- had lunch
- my wife went weaving class , organised activity of YTL resort
- enjoyed the black sand beach nearby
- had dinner, with traditional Bali dance by locals

25/Jan/2008
- departed from YTL Resort , to our second hotel stay , Mutiara Bali villas, near Legian.
- went on shopping in bustling Kuta area, Matahari shopping mall
- enjoyed sunset at Kuta beach
- dinner in Mutiara Bali villa

26/Jan/2008
- enjoyed breakfast & 2 hour spa in Mutiara Bali villa
- dropped by road side stall for babi guling kampung dish, on the way to Tanah Lot
- visited Tanah Lot temple, had lunch nearby
- visited Ubud market for souvenir shopping
- enjoyed cultural kecak show at Sahadewa cultural hall near Ubud, Batubulan
- had dinner in Mutiara Bali Villa

27/Jan/2008
- souvenir shopping in Geneva handicraft gallery warehouse in Legian
- more shopping at Kuta Matahari mall
- departed from Ngurah Rai Bali airport to KLIA at 1.55pm flight

We await for another trip to Bali ......... :-)

Wife's birthday gift, Evelyn & Crabtree

2010-06-11T23:09:00.000+08:00

I was thinking of what to buy for my wife's birthday last month. Many ideas went through my mind. However , I remembered that she was asking about a certain perfume, when I was in Langkawi in 23rd April 2010 , attending a company team-building event. She was adamant on this specific brand of perfume, mentioning she had used it once & loved the perfume smell so much. That specific perfume was Evelyn Rose from Evelyn & Crabtree. I checked out the website (http://www.crabtree-evelyn.com.my/) , and found out that the brand has several stores in Malaysia , including one in MidValley (ground floor), one in Bangsar & one in Penang island.

I dropped by the Midvalley branch to purchase the perfume for my dear wife. As I arrived at the store , the sales lady greeted me with a "Good afternoon" and showered me with a wide smile. I told her I was wanting to buy my wife the Evelyn Rose perfume, and the sales lady gave the product , and also she let me have a sample to smell. The perfume had a smell of rose essence , very original, with a tinge mix of other flowers, like being in a rose garden. As mentioned in the website , the perfume is made from unique Dave Austins English roses.

I purchase the following items :

Evelyn Rose perfume - price RM215.00
Mint; Fennel & Ivy Botanical Body Bar Soap - price RM30.00
Evelyn lotion sample pack box - given free

I was happy with the sales lady who offered me a box filled with Evelyn Crabtree lotion sample bottles, with the purchase. I was also itching to try out the "Mint; Fennel & Ivy Botanical Body Bar Soap" which promises to give a invogirating bath.

I had the gifts wrapped in a red gift box to make it look nice & irresistable, make her want to open it.

I presented the gift to my wife on her birthday, and she was very happy. She liked it so much , she was smiling the night away.
She tried out the soap, and felt invigorated by the mint soap. The next morning I took my bath & used the mint soap. I felt good , with a extra clean feeling all over my body.

Today is already 11/June/2010. It is about a month since we started using the mint soap. My wife uses it every day , while I use it on occasional basis. I like the fresh feeling the soap gives me on every bath. But I noticed that something else about the soap which was interesting . Despite the soap being used almost a month, the soap has not reduced much in size. The soap is only slightly smaller than the day we bought , after one month of usage. For normal soaps , it would have been used fully by 2 weeks. This Evelyn mint soap is really worth the money.

Thank you, Evelyn Crabtree.

Evelyn Rose perfume
http://www.crabtree-evelyn.co.uk/eng/products/fragrance/eau-de-parfum/eau_de_parfum?307110

Evelyn Crabtree Mint; Fennel & Ivy Botanical Body Bar Soap
http://www.crabtree-evelyn.co.uk/eng/products/bath-body/soaps/mint_fennel_ivy_botanical_body_bar_soap?14139

Setting Streamyx ADSL wireless router+modem in your home

2010-06-06T02:18:00.000+08:00

Dlink DSL-2640T

Being in the IT field, I try my best to help others build certain simple IT solutions in their home. One such requirement was to setup a wireless ADSL modem router, in my in-laws house. Having a wireless Streamyx ADSL router modem, would allow wireless laptops, PCs, and IPhones in the household, to be able to access Internet directly , wirelessly & easily. That wireless modem router modem would be connected to a telephone line which has been registered for the Telekom Malaysia Internet ADSL Streamyx line.

I did a search on which brand of wireless router modem to buy , on the Internet. I stumbled upon the list of Telekom Malaysia certified Streamyx DSL modems (see link below) .

Based on the list , I decided to buy the Dlink DSL-2640T Wireless G ADSL2+ Router (RM169.00), as I have experience in using Dlink products, and I feel they are a reliable brand for home use IT products market.

Dlink DSL-2640T Wireless G ADSL2+ Router
- 4 LAN ports ( for physical network cable connection to PCs, laptops, etc )
- 1 tel line port
- ADSL2+ provides a dedicated service over a single telephone line operating at speeds of up to 24Mbps downstream and up to 1Mbps upstream ( adequate in terms of Streamyx ADSL line )
- built-in firewall for security ( I would recommend using PC firewalls rather than the Dlink firewall, easier to manage & troubleshoot by users)
- easy to install with manual & wizards
- web based setting page - can set wireless access password in WEP, WPA & WPA2 encryption protocols
- Streamyx ADSL modulation uses G.dmt, and this modulation has full rate downstream: up to 8 Mbps / upstream: up to 1 Mbps ( able to support speeds of up to 8Mbps, but actual speed is limited , or depends on Streamyx package)
- has QOS support (Quality of Service) which allows bandwidth allocation to specific users, to ensure fair line bandwidth usage & no line monopoly by one user (complicated to set, for normal users).

The screenshots below shows settings in the DLink DSL2640T for a typical home Streamyx line ( dynamic IP, using streamyx ID & password ). This setting below uses PPPoE/PPPoA mode (and not Bridge mode like old Streamyx modems), which does not require users to use any Streamyx dialer software to run & connect to Internet. You can connect to Internet the same way as in outside wireless hotspots like Starbucks , Secret recipe, and petrol stations.

Streamyx modem setup steps :
a) http://smartinfo.com.my/IT/PC_Hardware/TM_Net_Streamyx_ZTE_ZXDXL_831_Modem.htm

b) http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,15838485

Streamyx modem setup steps - list of default passwords
a) http://www.kkboss.com/tutorial/streamyx-adsl-modem-default-password

List of Telekom Streamyx certified DSL modems :
a) http://www.streamyx.com.my/get_streamyx/get_streamyx.php?id=getstreamyx_package_dsl

Setting for Dlink DSL2640T to use home Streamyx (1/3)

Setting for Dlink DSL2640T to use home Streamyx (2/3)

Setting for Dlink DSL2640T to use home Streamyx (3/3)

iBaby electronic baby cradle device

2010-06-06T02:09:00.000+08:00

My baby son Adithya is very fussy baby. He only seems to sleep when he is being carried or rocked up and down. Because of this, me & my wife have had continous sleepless nights. It came to a point where it was affecting our work performance, missing deadlines (both me & my wife are working). I realised getting enough rest is important in order to keep use active through the day. So I said "Enough is enough".

I went to purchase the iBaby Electronic baby cradle device at Manjaku store, Bandar Baru Bangi. With the cost of RM169.00 , it came in box set complete with springs (7 , I think), for various baby weight load. In the box, there was also the hook and the spring plate. You just have to install it with your existing , or new , baby cot.

The device moves the cradle up & down via a motor moving stick ( stick on end connected to motor unit, another end to the spring plate ). As such, when the device runs, the stick moves up & down thus moving the spring plate & cradle. The speed can be adjusted, although the speed difference FAST & SLOW mode is small difference.

This RM169.00 Malaysian product investment was worth it, we were able to sleep better with the help of iBaby. It does not require us to stay awake & rock the cradle manually. Thanks to technology !!

18 February 2010

2010-02-17T22:39:00.000+08:00

I arrived home at 10.10pm today, after having dinner & late work for audit preparation. Sometimes when I come back late like today, it makes me think " Is it really worth coming this late?" I only had a glimpse of my baby boy Adithya, he was sound asleep. My wife was tired , so she was snooring with him.