Amelie - 04

I just gave my secretary the bank-in slip of the transaction last night.

"D, can you open a new file for this?"

She shook her head several times

Today, I left healthy diet at home.

Today I had a boring breakfast of cereal, raisin and honey.

Today my sister-in-law called

Today we are going for lunch in Cyberjaya

Today we are going to have Mandy Rice with lots of Mutton

Today I will go to the gym after that

Tomorrow I will be on healthy food again (i hope)

The day after tomorrow - I will be running 10K

Ok dok?

Amelie - 03

I am not going to Kuantan this week.

I promised Mr. Selva I will be in Kuantan and will pay him the selling price of the car and the transportation. In return he will arrange the transportation and also the transfer of ownership document.

Unfortunately, I do not have any appointment in Kuantan this week, nor next week as the Aussies will be in KL and there is no immediate necessity for me to be in Kuantan or Bukit Ibam.

I called Mr Selva up this morning and proposed him an option without me going to Kuantan. He was quite busy with his work in the workshop and promised to call me back in the evening.

He kept his word, he just called. We have agreed. I can’t go to Kuantan. I will bank in the money for the car and the transportation and he will arrange the delivery of the car to KL together with the transfer form.

I got his bank details and off to Bangsar now to transfer the money.

This might sound stupid but I think I can take the risk. I met Mr. Selva and I think I can trust him. Besides, I know where he lives.

David has arrange a space in a workshop in Bandar Putri, Klang. I don’t know where that is, but I am sure I will be commuting there every Saturday soon, to monitor the progress of another restoration work.

I hope the restoration is not going to cost me a bomb.

We will see….

Amelie- 02

I called Mr Selva @ Tamil (current owner) this morning.

This is the 5th time since I left Kuantan on Friday.

I bet he thinks I am such a nut case craving for corroded junks.

Do I care?

Nope.

I have a agreed on the price and I know it's going to cost me quite a bit to restore. Even though I don't have all the money in the world (and I don't think it going to be that much), I have time.

Selva has arrange for a transportation to ship the car to KL. It's going to cost me RM800. David said it's reasonable.

David sms-ed me the address of the location where the Peugeot going to be in a new home. Covered from the elements of corrosive rain and blazing sun.

It says Lorong Sanggul
Bandar Putri,
41200 Klang
Selangor.

Where the heck is that?

I seriously hope the transporter have a GPS.

Or may be it is more realistic for me to get David to draw a map to get there.

Commodity Conundrum.

(extracted from TIME May 18, 2009)

Prices for raw materials are rising despite the recession - and big jump may be in store.

If the world economy IS GOING TO improve, commodities are going to be the THE BEST PLACE TO BE.; If the world economy DOESN'T improve, commodities are going to be THE BEST PLACE TO BE.

Stranger in his own land.

Well, actually tourist in his own city.

That was me, yesterday (Sunday).

Some people get depressed when Sunday afternoon arrives.

I don’t because - hello! - it is still Sunday!

Since we are in this topic, besides the fact that I do suffer from “Monday blues” sometimes, I do think it has been way overrated – especially on Monday mornings. And very especially (very especially?) when people put it on their status update on FB.

Come on and get real! We know Mondays come (and go) every week.

I spend half of Sunday in Bukit Bintang area – movie (X-Men), lunch (Nasi Ayam Hainanese – still good, but expensive lah) and drank and chat at this little tourist hotel called The Heritage while watching the world went by.

I felt I was in Bangkok with 3 great companies (ZK, HM, RII).

Before we knew, it was already dark and it was time for dinner. Seriously, I could do that for hours but, hey we’ve got to get real as Sunday was subsiding, Monday was lurking like a gentle beast.

It was a fun weekend and I just survived Monday - it was not a big deal, really.

1st. 10 in 1 and a bit. Woo Hoo!

I have always wanted to try running but the variety of boy’s toys I have been into have deterred me.

I don’t have the time, nor do I have the spare cash. That’s another deterrence.

Today, I succumbed to the challenge.

As usual, to deter me from going out partying, I promised N to join her for a run starting at Lake Garden.

Her message – OK sharp b4 645

Under pressure and a bit of anxiety, I went to bed at 11, woke up a few times before I finally woke up at 5.45am.

Do you guys shower before exercise?

I don’t.

While warming up, TSB arrived and remind me of my pillow face. I didn’t care. This is not a catwalk. It’s a run.

Then II arrived. We haven't met each other physically in a while. Saw each other on FB. He thought he was going to see me when he read my status last night.

N finally arrived, popped up the boot of her SUV. Man, this woman lives in her car or what? She has all her gym and running stuffs – among others I dare not explore.

We started walking for a bit and began our run on Jalan Parlimen. I warned N to be gentle as I have not broken the 5km trash-hold in my life.

She took me through what they cal the “double hill route’ which basically through Bank Negara and Kenny Hills ended near Tugu Negara.

The route is not that foreign to me as I have done it on my bike countless time when I didn’t feel like a long weekend ride, or when I am too lazy to load my bike into the car.

In fact that route was my training route for my France bike tour.

We talked quite a bit while running. From politics to racial issues and even property – of course – when you pass those mansions on Kenny Hills…..

I have to say some of the houses are big but totally tasteless. But some are really nice dream homes.

After a couple of major climbs and a “surprised climb”, passing Istana Selangor and French preschool, the last turn was quite a pleasant surprise when I saw the New Bukit Aman building which mean, we were done.

Kenny Hills was a nice route. Hardly any traffic, quiet and green. I felt like I was far away from KL.

Reminded me of Bukit Kiara on MTB.

10km and 1 hour and a bit.

Kinda proud of myself and has N to thank.

We deserve a reward after the run. We went to Tangling (no, didn’t have the nasi lemak – overrated, I think) joined by BB and KL and their friend shortly after.

It was quite an achievement to me.

When I reached home, I straight away registered for the Standard Chartered KL Marathon next month – just the 10km.

Woo Hoo!






kinda footnotes:

Surprise climb – I call it surprise climb because N didn’t tel me about the climb. Since I was quite familiar with the route, I could foresee if was coming. So, the surprise didn’t quite work in the end.

N is the wife of one of my cycling buddies, N who is also a cousin to TFF.

TSB is a cycling buddy and getting into running. We rode a couple of times together in Batu 18, Ulu Langat route. Nasi lemak and kopitiam is his specialty.

TSB is very articulate and ALWAYS on FB. Always!

II is an old friend. One of the earlier dot com heroes. We work together before during dot com days when office was his home. I remember he actually have a sofa-bed in the office with huge glass wall facing the KLCC.

He gave up smoking.

II: Feb 07 I couldn't swim to the other end of a 50m pool.
Feb 08 I was at the start line in Langkawi. Go for it dude!

Amelie - 01

I was in Kuantan earlier today.

I have been eying at this little French thing for a few weeks now. Like when I used to restore old furniture before, I have eyes on these sort of things. Other people might see it as a piece of junk by the road side.

I talked to my Aussie partners the other nite, they both laughed at me. Fair enough! They even called it a Renault. (Duh!)

I don't see it as a junk.

I can already see what it's going to look like once restoration is completed.

I don't know much about the car yet.

I met the owner but didn't as too many questions because the basic questions were already asked and answered. I didn't want to talk more, afraid he might change his mind.

Based on what I learned from restoring the Fiat, I have a good idea how to judge this car, whether it is worth restoring.

the Peugeot emblem - original, perfect condition. Not easy to get small parts like this.


A bit of rust in the bonnet. Quite a major problem, I think but reparable. The car has been under the rain and shine for years. I think I can get the bodyh work done. It's major but certainly not impossible.

Again, the little details are still in good condition. Re-chroming will bring its shine back.


Even though the car has not been running for years, all the parts are there. It was conforting to know that the owner (who I spoke to) is a mechanic. I think the engine is still in good condition.



Again, major rust require major body work. How ever, the window frames are still intact and all the windows are not broken. Relatively good since I don't have to hunt for too many spare parts.


The boot. Looks ok but the fact that it's wet, scared the shit out of me. Rust is like cancer on old cars. You can only know the truth once you scrape the paint job. They tend to be a series of surprises but if it is not beyond repair, the body shop can gladly do it.


I learned from David, one of the most difficult replacement parts to get is the seats. Typically, seats will go first over the years and car owners change them to Japanese seats which easily available from Kedai Kereta Potong.

I am lucky! The seats are still ok. In fact the original covers are still there but I am not sure of the condition. I dare ot touch s it was a bit dusty and it was a hot day.



They look alright to me.


The dashboard is good. All the instrumentations are still there. The floor, however, looks a bit scary.


I like the details. Classic.
This is not just a Peugeot 204, it 204S. Like a sport edition.


When I was small, I used to collect matchbox miniature cars. I love them. I had fleets of them. And one of them was this car. I still remember. At that time I didn't even know how to pronounce the French name.


I saw a convertible 204 quite sometime ago driven by a Mat Salleh lady in Damansara Heights. She must be French. I love it - a cabriolet!


The hubcaps, all 4, are still there. Not easy to get the spares!


Look closely. Got pokok tumbuh through the engine.


I told you!!! Got pokok!

Despite what ever, I have managed to convince the owner to sell to me. He is ok.

I spoke to David (several times) today and he's going to accept the challenge.

Could this be another fun project?

I certainly hope so.

Meanwhile, I shall do some research.

Wish me luck!

The Peugeot 204 is a small family car produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot between 1965 and 1976.

The 204, known in development as Project D12, was available in many body styles including a sedan/saloon/berline, convertible/cabriolet, coupe, estate/wagon, and a van. It was launched in Paris, France on April 23, 1965 and became the best-selling car in France from 1969 to 1971.

Engine

The 204 used a front-wheel drive layout and was launched with a single overhead cam 1130 cc gasoline engine (the maximum allowed for the 6CV 'car tax' class in France). In September 1975, less than a year before production ceased, it received a more modern petrol engine, now of 1127 cc. Claimed maximum output, which at launch had been 53 bhp (39 kW), increased to 59 bhp (43 kW), though there was a marginal reduction in maximum torque.

Now the Hyatt Regency has become the biggest joke ever.

I just wrote about how unhappy I was with the services I got from Hyatt Kuantan and I have been avoiding it.

It has never been my first choice. Unfortunately my regular hotels were full.

I don’t want to elaborate but what happened was – I left my room at 8am for breakfast meeting and only came back after dinner and guess what?

I had such a long day, 2 conference calls, lunch appointment, dinner appointment….. all I think about was to get back to my room, shower (may be.. ) and hit the sack because I had a 7.30 breakfast appointment the next day.

I dragged my feet to my room, tapped the key-card and open the door.

The room was not done up!

It was exactly the way I left it in the morning – plus the door to the balcony was ajar – luckily I was on the 4th floor.

I immediately turned into the biggest bitch ever (drama kan?) and called the front office to get the duty manager to come to my room immediately.

The duty manager came offered to get the housekeeping to clean up the room.

I said NO!

In fact I said:

No!

I want you to pack up all my stuff, get me another fresh room with the same view NOW.

And they did just that.

I have stayed at the various hotels before, from one of the most expensive to the cheapest in Thailand – I have NEVER came back to my room to find the room was not dine up.

It’s too fundamental to get it wrong.


I wrote a complain letter to the GM yesterday. The GM called me personally to apologize and admitted that it was their shortcomings, followed with a lengthy apology email and offer to upgrade me to the Regency Club the next time I stay there (big deal!).


So, Crushhio – may be I am younger than u think. huhu!

I find cooking is quite therapeutic. And I sense there are quite a few you out there who share the same view.

That’s quite normal right. It’s far from weird or eccentric.

Last month I had dinner with a high ranking government official, a Dato’ actually, and we talk about everything under the sun over dinner. I can sense, like me, he didn’t like business talk over dinner.

He actually confessed that to him, ironing clothes is therapeutic.

He said:

Even though we have a maid at home, I still like to iron my shirt before I complete the Sudoku and then only I go to bed.

I was at KLIA earlier.

I spotted some airlines passengers with mask on their faces because of the latest swine flu scared.

It made me nervous, really.

It’s no fun to travel for work.

It’s even more no fun to travel when I feel vulnerable with fatal germs flying around.

That’s not the only bad part. It was raining when we took off. Typically KL Kuantan enroute Kuantan is quite rough. The rain was heavy and the ride was really rough. So rough, they didn’t even serve drinks.

We safely landed – not before a rough touched down.

I remember my brother who is a pilot told me once that it is a safety procedure to land hard when it rains to ensure the grip on the tarmac to avid skidding or overshooting.

So the hard landing was on purpose – it’s slightly scary, but It’s for our safety.

I am going to Kuantan for work.

Yeah, again!



Will be at the Hyatt again.

Its nice, but the service is crap and the rooms are old (despite renovation) and small.

Once a arrived almost midnight called the room service to ask for a mug of hot Milo before I hit the sack.



20 minutes later they called and said they were out of Milo.

Can you imagine a Hyatt out of Milo? You can at least get one of the boys to go to 7/11 at Pantai Teluk Chempedak.

The manager on duty was lucky because (I was surprised myself) I didn’t make it such a big fuzz. Instead I just went to bed.

Strange.

I wasn’t even in love.

I don’t normally buy Time magazines.

To me it’s mahal, and secondly they always have it on board or in the lounge.

Today, I didn’t travel Business. Time is bad. Save company money. So I bought a copy of TIME – 100 World Most Influential People.

TIME explained how they come into “their” top 100. Fair enough. But I still think there was some names missing that deserve to be in the 100.

What about Osama ben Laden (isn’t he supposed to the master mind of September 11, the war in Iraq, Afghanistan and others?), Aung San Suu Kyi (A strong symbol of democracy), Ahmadinejad (his nuclear determination that shakes the insecurity of Israel) among other.

I keep the rest of my list of 100 Worlds Most Influential People to myself.

Having said that, there are several individuals impressed me.

I think (I am seriously unsure about this) this is the first time a husband and wife appear in the same top 100 list – Bro. Barrack and Sis. Michelle from the Whitehouse (even though the aren’t).

Gordon Brown on Barrack Obama:

“Of course, his oratory is today unmatched. But his courage – the courage to go first, to lead, where none have gone before – is doubly unmatched.. When he speaks, he gives those who hear him confidence: not in him but in themselves. It was said of Cicero that when people heard him, they turned to one another and said, “Great speech”; but when Demosthenes spoke, people turned to one another and said, “Let’s march.” All around the world people are marching with Barrack Obama.”

Not many people like pax Americana, especially when Bush was in power. To me, he is just a bloody cowboy.

1 thing I learned about this land of the Free and Home of the Brave is that: The US is where a lot of people’s dreams came true. Like Sinatra said in his song: If you can make it here, you’ll make it anywhere in New York New York.

Is it difficult to digest – less than 100 years ago (and this is not a long time in a time frame of a civilization) there were still social segregation in the US. Skin color determined your position in a society. And now, they have a black President – probably the most powerful man in the world.

And the best part is – there is not even a single racial riot in America when Obama was inaugurated. Where is the white supremacy KKK group?

As mush as I hate some aspects of America – I still think it is a great nation with opportunities – before this financial fiasco, of course.


Mag Ryan on Tom Hanks

“A while back, I was at a dinner, and we all talk about art. What is art? Someone said art is whatever it is that makes you fell less alone. If this is true, then Tom is art. He makes me feel less alone. I imagine me makes a lot of people feel this way. He keeps our best selves, our dream selves, excellent company”

I can still watch When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle forever!

Anwar Ibrahim on Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

“The time is right for Indonesia, as the world’s most populous Muslim nation, to assume a more prominent position in Asia and throughout the Muslim world. In response to President Obama’s warm overtures to Muslim countries for a new phase in relations with the US., Yudhoyono can take the lead and chart a new course for the region.”

Quite bluntly, I would say this is one of Anwar’s many attempts to suck up to the Americans. So obvious.

Was at The Annex Central Market to look at the Art for Grab.

Came across this, from one of the comics:

Title: GIN & PLATONIC

Dialog: So.... even I get piss-ass drunk, I still wouldn't have sex with you.

It’s a habit that I still keep until today to write (with a pen) my journal.

I am quite an old school kind of guy. I like writing with a good script pen on a good quality writing paper.

I write about anything really.

I wrote about how I feel a bout the place, or interesting quote I just read, or my observation from the surrounding or just anything.

Sometimes during holidays, I read my old postings in my journal and every time I read the old postings, I say to myself “I am glad I have a journal!” I am.

Recent Tioman trip while flipping through my journal I stumbled upon this, among others:

“Kadang kadang orang yang kita paling sayanglah yang paling susah untuk disayangi”

movie: cinta

It's almost midnight.

But I am still hungry.

A bowl of cereal with some dried fruits and nuts is OK I think.

Will stop munching after this or my workout will go down the drain.

feeling a bit guilty, actually...

My recent trip to Kuala Terengganu coincided with my friend RII’s trip training for Endurance (horseback) Riding competition end of this month.

We made a deal to have lunch together and fly back on the same flight.

My brother was quite punctual, so I reached the airport first.

I had a ciggie at the entrance with an official, to kill time basically. By the way, Terengganu airport has major design flaw – I wrote about this before, so lets not get there.

RII soon arrived, sister was driving with his mom and dad. I saw him saying goodbye to his mom and hugged and kissed his dad before saying goodbye.

I miss mine.

I always enjoy being around individuals with a hundred of years of combined experience. Inspiring. It's like landed in a deep pool of info without learning through the hard ways, but I have to remember one thing -

There is NO shortcut!

Kris L's antics.

KL is a Honda freak.

His current Honda should be his 5th.

Even his Dad had to buy a CRV rather than other SUVs.

And of course he is always corny, bordering annoying with his "dry" sense of humor he calls jokes.



Out of the blue, I got this sms from him:

KL: I saw a Kia Canival.... PES74 = pesta. Cool :)


Attempting to annoy him:

M: I saw a Honda... PES7 = PEST. Bloody annoying.

He went:

KL: I saw a dick on wheel - PEN15

M: I seriously know the car, and the last time I saw it was a Honda. I swear!

And the classic KL went:

KL: Do you swear by the moon and the stars in the sky

I immediately gave up.

I continued doing my minutes to be emailed to Perth.

Classic JD

We had a four-way conference call this morning, initiated by JD.

It was totally hilarious as JD can sometimes be such an airhead – even though he is a brilliant kinda guy.

A snippet:

JD: B, did you drop me as Facebook friend.

B: How can I drop some thing I haven’t added.

I guess the adding and dropping as friends in Facebook is quite a drama, to some people a trauma.

I have my own share of this.

I am glad it happened though.

One thing for sure, I need to eliminate some names who have been spamming me with promotions of a club. I get 3 of the same messages for the same event, which I’ve have the intention to go.

Tioman Revisited




I had a wonderful time in Tioman during labor day weekend. Wonderful time – total relaxion.

I did absolutely nothing.


3 days and 2 nights were filled with eating, reading, sun bathing, sleeping by the beach.



Oh well, I did shot some pic.

I also waited for the sunrise and sunset.

The first time I went to Tioman was years ago. My brother was working for a nice resort there before and of course I stayed for free.



I still remember, that was the first time I tried jet ski and I loved it immediately. (Me and my addiction to speed.



Before last weekend, I was in Tioman about 4 years ago. But that was a dive trip where I live on board of a diveboat.



I remember we anchored at Tekek one night for dinner and night out. I didn’t enjoy Tekek at all (then). It was like a pasar malam.

After that I shied away from Tioman until last weekend.



It was a last minute decision and I had to pull some strings to get a room and a boat ride. Luckily my friends in Rompin Distric office managed to help me.

I thought I was last minute.



A couple of days before the trip ZK called to inquire what was my plan for the long weekend and decided to “nak ikut”



OK lah.

We had a good time chilling out.



As much as I don’t really like the development on the island, the trace of it’s yesteryear’s glory being the top 10 most beautiful island in the world was still there.



One thing for sure, the habitants and the tourists need to be more sensitive to the fragile nature of the island ecology.

I have to agree with ZK – Redang is a lot nicer.

Of course la, Terengganu kan!