Seafood dinner at Pandamaran

It's the weekend, so the guys decided to go take a trip down to Klang for seafood. The usual suspects included myself, Merv, Wan Yee, Jackson, Azuan and Zoe. Jackson and Wan Yee drove. Jackson lead the way, and the moment we got there, it was a totally different story. Jackson missed a turn and we ended up going back towards Kapar. To make matters worst, it was getting quite late and Zoe had a light lunch. Looks like Azuan's cover story of a scenic route didn't fool them. Hehehe.

Talk about a weekend in Klang and no where to go! Every car in Klang practically gathered in front of the Store shopping centre. Is it true that on Saturdays there's really no where to go except to the Store Shopping Centre?

After about half an hour of rounding about in Klang town, Wan Yee decided to call his colleague who was from Klang. After a few directions, we were headed back in the right direction, away from Klang town and towards Pandamaran. We finally got there at around 9.30pm. Considering that Klang is just about 30 minutes drive from KL, and we left at 7.30pm... it was quite a long journey. We could've ended up in Ipoh in that travelling time. Hehehe, but then again, I'd blame it on the confusing roads. All the small roads look the same! Can't the town council design the roads to look more recognizable or something???

As soon as we found the place, we looked for the closest restaurant available and just ordered our usual dishes like Sweet and Sour crabs, Mantis prawns cooked with dried chilli, clams and deep fried calamari. The food wasn't something to shout about, but it did fill our stomachs and the price we paid wasn't expensive at all. Would I return? I'd have to give that a pass. The next time we go on a road trip for seafood, either we bring some snacks, or we bring a map!

The night wasn't a disaster. It was good to have the group together, going out for seafood and chit-chatting. A little something different than our usual mahjong nights. Hmmm, got back, managed to catch the second half of the uneventful MU match.

My Mahjong Set

My Mahjong Set 


Finally! After 2 days of searching... I've finally managed to pick up a mahjong set for myself. It's been tough, all the walking and countless browsing from shop to shop... but it's been all worth it! Even Wan Yee decided to picked up a set for himself. We went to Salak South at first, but all we could find was an old school version of the mahjong set. Did not look that nice, so we decided to skip it and look for one in SEA Park. When we finally got there, we saw this huge sign of 'Poh Mah, which is the brand of the mahjong set that we were looking for. Talk about desperate for a mahjong set!

Now that the Tiling Committee has been officially set up, our president Mervyn who provides our daily venue for tiling sessions, has called for the first AGM. All members except for Andrew were present for the first meeting. Wan Yee, Azuan, Jackson, Mervyn, Rudy and myself had our first two table session at his place tonight after breaking of fast with Rudy at Pizza Hut. Wan Yee had his 'virgin' mahjong set officiated by the members. My set on the other hand was broken-in this afternoon at my place. Oh yes, we will see many more tiling sessions to come. Now, Wan Yee has come up with the rule that every member of the Tiling Committee has to own at least one mahjong set, I'm just waiting to see when Rudy and Azuan will pick their's up. Ohh guys, don't buy the cash chips, Wan Yee and I've got extra.

The Quest for a Mahjong Set

After lunch this afternoon, decided that I needed to get myself a mahjong set. The 4 player set that my dad has just didn't cut it. I needed a 3 player mahjong set. Called Merv up and he directed me to Petaling Street, near Hotel Malaya. Got there, traffic was not that bad and the rain stopped. Perfect walking conditions in Chinatown. Parked the car and did a few browsing around the shops in the vicinity. Walked through the few shops, didn't see any mahjong sets. I could've sworn that 3 years ago, I would've seen at least one shop on the road that I walked on selling the mahjong sets. Now, it's almost impossible to find one!

Walked through the newly renovated Chinatown. Yes, it's been completed for about 2 years now, but I just got back from Brisbane in July, so it's still new to me. It's a lot cooler now with the shaded roof, complete with exhaust fans. Looks really nice and gives Chinatown a really new look. One thing didn't change though, there are still DVD peddlers running around asking, "What movie are you looking for?"

Now, back to my quest, as I was saying.. I could not find a single mahjong set in Petaling Street. I managed to find one shop which sold it, but the quality just didn't cut it, so I didn't buy it. Walked around the whole place, even to the shops around Hotel Malaya that Merv pointed out. Nada, zilch, zero, none...

After an hour of walking, decided that it was pretty pointless. Searched through the whole of Chinatown, there wasn't a place selling mahjong tiles. It's become extinct!

Hopefully, will have better luck tomorrow. Will be trying to find it around the Salak South area. The quest continues...

Income Tax Department, Banana Leaf and Baskin Robbins!

As lethal as the topic looks, that was pretty much what happened today. I had to go to the income tax department to make payments for my mum, and at the same time check whether I owed them any money. About three months ago, I received a statement from them demanding my EA form for 2003. As I was back in uni that year, it was impossible for me to produce an EA form for them. I had no income! These tax people just don't seem to get the message. I wrote them a letter explaining my situation to them in July and a few days later I get a statement telling me that I owed them 265 bucks for an analyzed income based on my previous earnings! I was thinking, didn't I just submit my letter to them in July? Why are they still sending me 'love letters'???

Anyhow, since I was going there to make a payment for my mum, thought I might as well go back there to see the status of my income tax. It pays to keep copies of documents that you submit to the Inland Revenue Board, a.k.a. money leechers! So I went up to the information counter, showed them the letter and showed them a copy of my letter that I submitted to them, mind you, by hand! After a few minutes of checking, the officer told me that the statement was sent before I submitted the letter. Talk about slow postal service! Now, I have a bone to pick with the people at the postal service in Malaysia! It takes a hell long of a time for them to get something delivered! But at the end of the day, I'm glad that I've settled this income tax issue, and am no longer worried by this, "I-owe-money-to-the-Inland-Revenue-Board-issue!"

Tonight, Wan Yee, Merv and I had banana leaf rice for dinner. Yumz, it was excellent and filling! Was totally stuffed up, and Merv had the idea of ice-cream for dessert! I just replied with, "Shimatta!" (Damn It! in Japanese). To make matters worst, there was an offer, buy two scoops and get the next scoop free! Talk about the attitude of being kiasu. Why take two, while you can have three? Hey, threesome's the way to go mate! I think I will make a mental note to myself, don't take irresistible offers, if your stomach can't take it! It was agony, though and interesting experience.

Talk about mid-day hooky and playing Mahjong...

I haven't had much time to write any entries into my blog. But then again I've been trying to keep myself busy. At least going out and not staying at home. It's really depressing come to think of it. It's like trying to do a balancing act, on one hand I am trying not to spend too much money and on the other, I want to get out of the house! It's just driving me up the wall!

Woke up to an early Monday. The night before was spent watching Manchester United beat Arsenal, followed by the last race of the Formula One season. Football was exciting as my favourite team won. Sad to say, Ferrari didn't claim their usual first position win, but nevertheless, it was an interesting race.

The race finished at around close to 2.30am, and after watching the post-race comments and all, I only managed to sleep around close to 4am. At 10am, my mum rang me on the cell and told me that she was coming home from Penang and asked me to pick her up. At least I was woken up first, then followed by a call from Merv asking me to come downstairs and go for breakfast with Zoe. Naturally, I told them to go ahead and that I'll meet them there.

The rest of the afternoon was pretty interesting. It must be nice to work for large corporations or to have a job that gives you unlimited freedom. OK, I shall cut Wan Yee some slack. The only reason he was able to join us for a session of afternoon mahjong was because his office had a power failure and there was no incentive for him to return there. Though, on his defence, he did find a power access point with power, but his manager needed the juice for his pc to finish up some work. Though I can't say the same for our dear friend Rudy. I was kinda shock to hear from Merv that he was going to join us for mahjong during 'lunch' hour. Azuan was there as the replacement for Rudy, when his one and a half hour lunch break was over. Hehehe.

And Merv, thanks for the beef tenderloins and chicken wings! They were deeeeelicious! Hmmm, wonder will we be doing this again on next Monday? Rudy? Wan Yee? Any comments?

Fuel leak?

Hmmm, looks like my greatest fear has been confirmed. I'm sure I have a fuel leak somewhere in the fuel line. After I changed the fuel tank on the 323, it seems that my car's consumption has gotten worst. It's drinking 31 litres and doing only 175km, which roughly translates to RM 0.25 per km after the recent fuel hike! Feels like I'm driving a 3.5 cc car! Talk about bad consumption!

It's a hassle to go through all the lines myself, so looks like one of these days I'm gonna have to bring the car in to have a thorough check up. And to add oil to the fire, I've got an oil leak somewhere in the engine bay. Don't know what oil it is. The transmission oil and the brake oil are both full to the brim. This just gets better and better. Looks like more repairs to the car. Hopefully it's nothing major, keeping my fingers crossed!

Trouble with my path...

Sigh... It's already been more than a month since I've been back from Brisbane. Been looking through the Classifieds and I've still not been able to find a job that I want. Maybe it's because I'm too picky. Hmmm, or maybe it's because I don't wanna try for something that I'm not used to. Knowing myself, I'm not one who likes to experiment with the unknown. I guess that's why I'm still jobless and to some extent, it's the same reason why I can't seem to find the perfect girl of my dreams.

I took some time to sit down and reflect on my past, back to when I was working. Honestly, I don't even know where I see myself in the future. All of a sudden, after graduating, I feel somehow lost. Before when I was working, everything seemed planned and I had a path to follow. Thinking back, I question myself, "Have I actually made the wrong decision to come back to study?"

I guess it's just that I'm looking for some comfort on where I will be headed. Somehow, my career path now seems a little clouded and I don't know where to steer my ship. Sorta like a Captain lost at sea without a compass, stuck in a thick fog.

Some people say that one's life is fated. Just how much should one believe in fate? Is it fate that decides where you work and how much you earn? Who you will spend the rest of your life with? Who decides your fate? Yourself? Or has it already been written?

Who knows, maybe I'll steer through this fog and somehow manage to find my way home. Wish me luck!

My Current Ride

My Current Ride 

Having spoken to some friends, I realized that some of you guys haven't seen the car that I bought. Nothing to shout about, just an old Mazda. '92 to be exact. Yes Gary a.k.a. G-Man, it's not Zoom-zoom, but Broom-brooom to you. I'd like to see you put a big bore exhaust on your Waja and let's see how it sounds with a 5" outlet. But it's gotten a new lease of life through an engine transplant, so the B8 is sitting nicely under the hood. Not much of a sleeper look, as most of you know me... I prefer not to be discreet. At least with the new Super Drager exhaust and a 3" exhaust pipping, it's a lot more quieter than when I got it off the previous owner.

Haven't exactly done much to the car since I got it. It's gotten a new paint work, courtesy of Ah Keong. Speaking of which, I gave him 11 days to complete my car and he assured me that it was more than enough time for him to finish the job. He says rest assured, that when I get back from Brisbane, I'd have my car ready for collection. For those of you who didn't know, I took the opportunity to have the car repainted when I went back to Brisbane for my convocation. Adrian's right, the next time I've got a job for Ah Keong, I'm not going to tell him that I'm going overseas or away. Just let him know when I want it and make sure I rush him for it. Now, back to the incident, after I arrived back in KL, I called Ah Keong in the morning and I asked if I can come collect the car. He said to me, "Yes, come now". I said, "OK. I'm around SS2 area, so I should be there in 5 mins". When I got there, the freaking car was still sitting inside the "oven". The rear and front lights were removed, so was the side mirrors and the wheels and other exposable parts were covered in newpaper! I got there, I shouted and cursed Ah Keong, and all he could say was, "Sorry, sorry..."

If it was like that, he should've just told me over the phone and said that the car wasn't ready and I could collect it in the afternoon. Don't make me go all the freaking way there to find that my car wasn't ready. I should've given him an 11 day post-dated cheque for that, which I didn't by the way.

Other than that, the car's had it's suspension raised and the fuel tank replaced. Probably shouldn't tweak the car anymore, not until I get a job. Have to conserve some funds for these few jobless months.

Someone's Got A New Car... Gen.2

I hope Jackson a.k.a. Khay Hoi does not kill me for posting this here. He's gotten his new wheels. Yups! The all new Proton Gen.2 with the Campro engine. Locally produced from chassis, the engine, the interior and the design, born and bred in Malaysia. Went with him yesterday to collect his 'Dune' coloured Gen.2. Whole afternoon the salesman was rushing him to come in and sign the papers, telling him that his car was ready. When we finally got there, it was a totally different story. Sure the car was sitting in the showroom, but guess what? The number plate wasn't even on it! And we were ushered in, had to sit a good half an hour while the salesman put the letters and numbers onto an empty license plate holder! Great! All the rushing and we had to wait for him to complete this task... slowly I might add.

Once the papers were signed, we went to check the car and all. Must say, it does look nicer than the one in the picture. The interior was a little.. hmm, how do I put it? Harsh? The fabric doesn't exactly scream comfort, but it was designed to be sporty in nature. I shall not compliment the car anymore, but with all the warnings that Jackson's been given about the complaints of this little new addition to Proton's stable, he should be able to give the benefit of the doubt that this indeed is a nice car.

The ride in the car feels rather bumpy, probably from the sports tuned suspension to give it a more sportier nature. But do we really need harder spring rating with all the potholes and the uneven road surfaces in Kay Elle? I shall not comment on this anymore as Proton's engineers have spent hours and countless resources in R&D to develop this new car. I guess at the end of the day, it's a car that fits the needs of someone on a budget and looking for a new car.

My final say, "Dude. Enjoy the new ride!"

My Previous Ride...

My Previous Ride 

Ahhh, my trusty ol' Nissan 180SX. Comes with an SR20 DET, manual transmission, TRUST exhaust system, LSD and HKS SSQV blow-off valve. Yes, it sounds like hogwash to most people, but this was my pride and joy. The paint was very faded when I got it, but due to the 'nothing-to-do syndrome' in Brisbane, I had all the time in the world to restore it back to the condition you see now. Sad day when I had to sell her off, sigh... cars come and go.