Bonnie & Clyde

An interesting poster I saw in a kopitiam...

Just a glimpse of some of the goodies you get there... :)



Belaccan Sotong. I know it’s weird to order belaccan in a Jap restaurant, but it just look too good!




Black Sesame Moochi. The real thang




Cheese Baked Crab. Clyde always fall for anything this! The crab was too small and dry for our liking




A sweet cold jelly-like dish with tuna bits




King Crab Miso Soup




Closer look




Fresh oysters as big as your palm




Fresh sashimi from the cold cut section




Grilled Salmon Head Shioyaki




Tempura




My favourite bit of the fish... the eyeball!!

Talked to some friends today, women, all of them. From bitching about their bosses and job pressure, we finally came to the topic of dream job.

There's this kinda job in this world. I dont know what's the title but it actually exist in some more advance cities. The main task of that job is to shop.

Not market research kinda shopping, where u r forced to buy things that might not interest u at all. I am talking about personal assistant kind of shopping.

Some rich and extremely busy people, too busy to even spend their hard earn money, hire someone to do their shopping. From buying household necessities, friends' birthday gifts, to clothings for function and fashion purposes. So these poeple are hired to solve their problems. Deciding on their bosses images and taste, they gotta buy things that the bosses wear and use and give as a present.

Main function of the job: shop, shop, and shop; for nice things using money from their bosses wallets.

This may sound very good but is not that realistic for Malaysia. Some Malaysians do have someone to shop for them but as I know, nobody is hired for solely for this purpose only.

I know some people are really having a job that is close to a dream job as described.

There's this guy owning a console game shop in a shopping complex near where I stay whom I think is really enjoying his life to the fullness. Basically what he do as I know is morning around 10am something, breakfast, newspaper, and comics. Open shop around 1130am, chat to customers (mostly afternoon session student from a school nearby), play PS2. Since that place isn't very heavy traffic and most of the customers can wait when he hang a notice on the door saying he'll be back in an hour's time, he can just get outta shop anytime he like, makaning, teh-tariking, chatting with his friends, or even napping. In short, all he does is just what I will do when I take a day off to rest at home.

He's doing it everyday, and making a living doing it.

I am happy for him.

Today, May 16th, is Teacher’s Day.

I met many teachers throughout my schooling days and I’m sad to say none of them inspired or mentored me. I guess I was too blur of a kid to remember much during kindy and primary school, but the teachers in my secondary school and art college were educational rejects. They don’t give two hoots about students’ well being or education standard, as long as they get their gaji buta. I heard countless stories about gems of a teacher and I studied for a good 16 years... SO WHERE ARE YOU GUYS??

There was the Ol’ Bulldog-Faced Fatty who bullied every slim, svelte, youthful bodied girl.

There was See-No-Evil-Hear-No-Evil in Rakan Sebaya Counselling Society who turned a deaf ear and a blind eye to child physical and sexual abuse, asking the student to “talk to your parents and sort things out.”

There was the Dream Killer who taught Art and told us “there’s no career in Art.” (go figure)

There was the CSI Wannabe who instructed prefects to remove a student’s bra and shake it about, just in case some stolen cash was stashed inside.

There was the Horny Old Goat who got beaten up by fathers and brothers coz he was having affairs with his student.

There was the same Horny Old Goat who also cheated students to pay him for books that was never published.

There was Talentless French Skeleton who told his students all of them are stupid.

There was the Illusionist who couldn’t hack it in the advertising field and opted for a career in lecturing instead and ended up stealing students’ ideas and designs to sell to his clients.

So a Happy Teacher’s Day to all of you. Go make someone’s life miserable now.

After my previous post titled "Fetish", I got mails from these two fellas (whom I have no idea and a man or a woman, the formal I suspect) suggesting me to a few fetish pay sites which I believe they are the webmaster. I dont know how they got my email, probably they tracked it down from the google mail account that listed in the blog; after finding out that I do not actually even read anything from there, they got to my yahoo account.

This is actually keep me pondering.

I used to think nobody actually read our blog cause there's only Bonnie and I giving feedback to each other almost all of the time. However, after that "Fetish" post, seems like there're actually some "outsiders" been reading the blog, maybe not regularly, but I believe some may have dropped by on and off.

The question is: if there've been some visitors, why isnt there any feedbacks at all? Maybe the writings are so crappy that the readers dont even bother to write anything. I can understand if they were reading my post. However, I think Bonnie's posts are fantastic and funny. She used to have her own blog and the responds were great!

Then I started to understand the reason when I read one of the email stating, " you will keep anonymous, not even your wife will know......"

I think one of the reason people dont give feedback or lack of interest, of course first my writing is bad (though Bonnie's arent), second, we appear in the cyber space as husband and wife.

Recently, a local radio station has been asking audiences to call in to share about their cyberspace experience. 9 out of 10 call-ins actually have some other intentions than what they appear to be. From some very desperate ones to really harmless ones. All of them have got to do with the opposite sex. Of the the one of this ten was actually trying to lie to the DJ.

This is very obvious with the male. However, to my experience, many of the female, too, have the tendency of acting this way.

Once in a while I will join these few chatrooms about Gundam/Model builder. I have no problem talking to guys (99% of them are guys anyway, and might be a bit geekish like me), but in rare ocassion, girls will join in. This is one experience I had:

This girl's nickname as in PJ_*****, so I know she is a Malaysian (Most of the people in that room were from HongKong, Chine or Taiwan). After she knew I'm from KL, we started chating. I told her about places in KL to find good deals, some modelling technics and use of scratch build material and such. During the conversations, I know her has a boyfriend (I assumed she pick the hobby up because of peer, and she told me her boyfriend isnt into it at all) and she knows I have a wife. Knowing me as a married man didnt bother her which made me feel at least there's one girl who is genuinely like the hobby. Until the moment I told her I might be posting some of my work and how-tos on my blog. She was interested to know the blog address. I told her, and I told her it's not a blog about modelling only, but one my wife and I share blogging whatever we like.

Then, things change immediately. She seemed lost interest in talking and just started talking to the others.

I think the fact that she knew my wife actually know what I'm doing in the internet makes her lose interest in continue to chat. Having a wife is ok, admitting it in the net is ok, but letting your spouse know what you are doing in internet is a big no no.

I think maybe this's the reason why people do not leave any message in our blog; of course besides the fact that half of the posts here are actually crappy writings.

Maybe it's time for me to retire. With me around, Nobody bothers about Bonnie's writing, no matter how good they are.

I think it's a real pity.

It’s a rare ocassion I lunch downstairs at the building’s cafe. The food served is tasty and the price is cheap but it occurred to me why I seldom patronise them.

Aside from the usual lunch hour rush and lack of tables, the customers are mostly women. The system is such that everyone takes an empty plate / styrofoam box, scoop their rice, select the dishes that are lined up and placed surrounding a square, continue around the corner to the other side and then pay at the counter, in true nasi campur style.

But the women, the women, oh my lordings. When they select the lauk, they use the ladle to pick the exact bits they want i.e. “I only want kailan leaves, not the stems,” OR “I only eat pieces of chicken without the skin,” OR “This dish looks like cauliflower, but I really want brocolli. Is there any brocolli in there?”

*kacau, kacau*

In my head I’d be screaming, “HELLOOO WOMAN IT’S JUST LUNCH NOT A MATCHMAKE SESSSION SO SOMETIME TODAY PLEASE!!!”

This entry was inspired by bryanscafe post on child discipline.

I had my hair washed and blown dry in a small saloon in Ipoh last week. Aside from myself and the 2 hairdressers, there was a couple of trannies, a mother and her son. The trannies were friends of the saloon owner and they were there for a courtesy visit. The mother, however, was there to monitor her 7 yo son’s haircut.

Kids being kids, the boy couldn’t and wouldn’t sit still. He was upset with the way his hair was being trimmed. Feeling frustrated and impatient with her son’s antics, she bellowed to the boy to “SIT STILL OR I’LL SMACK YOU RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW!” The trannies fussed about the boy to comfort him but the boy refused to be placated easily. He turned his head this way and that.

*PIAK*

Mother gave son a backhand on the head. It worked. The boy sat very still and did not utter another word of complaint. I was overcome with respect for the mother as she got her son to do what she wanted and yet not go overboard with it. It’s been awhile since I witnessed child discipline. Residing in modern KL, I’ve often seen children being told to behave themselves or else. Firm as they sound, but never do the parents venture beyond ‘or else’. And kids know nothing is coming so they continue behaving like monkeys. They run around like a witch with an itch, worm their way out of being punished and demand that extra piece of candy or new toy, all at the same time. Parents are held hostage so they give in to anything to avoid embarassment. Not glam ma liddat.

Kids know how. That’s right, KIDS ARE EEEEEVIL. :P

Back in Clyde’s days, MIL will tell him off whenever he misbehave in public. She will also warn him what to expect once they get home. Clyde would get all freaked out as the suspense is worse than the actual punishment LOL. As for me, mom just smacked on the spot and then some.

Although I feel child discipline is necessary, it’s very important that parents do not lose the whole point for discipline. Put your anger and frustrations aside and focus on the purpose. There is no perfect way to do it but with a little firmness and a whole lotta patience, nothing is impossible.

I had an interesting chat with this particular girlfriend of mine, as always.

I knew her from one of my earliest agencies. Both of us left and moved on but we still keep in touch.

Every outing will result in heated debates, leaving me to ponder about life late into the night. Both of us are hot-headed, stubborn and refuse to give way. She will insist her problems are bigger than mine and I will disagree. What a thing to fight over! You’d think we are both comparing boob size or something! LOL

I suppose I will never see her side of the story or know how she feels unless God forbid, I’m in her shoes. And vice versa. The grass is always greener on the other side and from a 3rd person’s POV, your problems will always look miniscule compared to theirs.

Doesn’t matter if you are depressed to the point sleep is affected coz “it’s only stress.”

Doesn’t matter if you loaned someone a five-figured amount of moolah and you may never get it back and the answer to this problem is “just let go.”

Doesn’t matter if your family treats you like a money tree coz “it’s good karma.”

As I drifted off to sleep, I realised I also gave her similar answers so why do I feel I’m so different compared? We both victimise ourselves, can’t see the big picture and we just can’t blardy let go.

Morale of the story? It’s fun to b*tch about life, but just leave it at that. Nobody is asking for advice, really.

I uploaded my Bali pics. Finally! They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so here are my millions:


Main entrance


Guardians leading in


Twin sharing room


Our lovely bathroom...


... comes with a tub!


Lobby stairs


Laguna Resort


Around the Laguna pool


More of Laguna pool


Greenery @ Laguna resort


A little R&R


Beachfront lounge chairs


Stairway to heaven


Laguna at night


Afternoon tea @ Mayang Seri, Laguna Resort


Indonesian Chilli Mud Crab @ Ocean Terrace, Laguna Resort. Our last supper at Bali, so to speak. We spent a good 3 hours tackling our crabs, looking at the sea and talking nonsense


La Chociala. Don’t ask me why we had Italian food in Bali, but it was too superb for questions! I chose a sauteed prawn for appetiser, Salmon with crispy skin for main and custard for dessert. Yuuuuum!


20 mins of winding stairs to get DOWN to the starting point for white water rafting @ Sobek. Ya ya, if you think walking down is peanuts, let’s see you try it!


I’d always imagine WWR is more turbulent, but not in the case of Sobek. The 11km ride is exhausting because the level is low so you gotta paddle harder. I’ve got scars of war to prove it! :P


Another 20 mins of winding stairs UP to get to our van. My legs were quivering at the end of the walk. The trick is not to stop, otherwise you’ll find it harder to continue. That’s a tip, guys. Write it down


Crispy Duck Set @ Laka Leke, Seminyak


Igenius sauces to accompany the crispy duck


Dessert @ Laka Leke, Seminyak


View of paddy fields at Laka Leke


Dusk


Uhu Club, where the guy’s yam seng sesh was commented as “typical asians with no manners” by caucasians pub goers


You will find similar structures like this at door entrances. It’s a symbolic representative of the doorway between Heaven and Earth

I did not take any good photos after day 2 coz my leg muscles were in pain and I had to wobble around. I even gave up shopping in Legian after 3 hours of wobbling. Wobblers do not make good bargainers or photgraphers. :(

Pictures by Bonnie, Rawrens, Wai & Kin

Actually, it’s more like a love motel.

Bonnie, mom, sis & her 2 kids went to Ipoh to attend a birthday dinner last weekend. We arrived in separate cars at separate times and that wouldn’t have been a problem for most people, but as Clyde says, it’s always a drama for Bonnie.

Sis and kids arrived first and rented a room at what looked like a basic, simple hotel that turned out to be awful and haunted by morons with brocolli for brains. At RM89 per night, I expected a pretty decent bunk.

For starters, when I arrived I couldn’t get sis on my mobile because of coverage problem. So I asked the receptionist which room my sis was staying. It took 3 attempts before she got it right. And then I asked if we could get a room on the same floor for convenience sake and she said the floor was fully booked. So, we opted for another floor and I paid RM100 deposit in cash. I was told the remaining change will be returned to me when I check out.

We got the room card, went up and settled down. I called sis and got through. She says she pre booked a room for me. Hmm... why didn’t I know that?

I called reception from the room phone and explained the situation to some girl (whom I assumed was girl no. 1) that I am moving to my sis' floor and that I will return the key card asap. On normal circumstances, though I may not have uttered the word ‘cancel’ or ‘checkout’, I assume people will take “changing my room” as that.

Anyway, the room was horrendous because:

There were no air con controllers because, “Sorry miss. We only have one air con controller for the entire floor.” So that means everytime I wanna adjust the air con I have to call reception desk izit? ”Yes miss. This is our hotel procedure.” WTF.



Guess what used to be placed here?




Questionable stains all over the carpets



More stains




Hole-in-one, or better known as the bedsheets

I got my room card from sis and settled down. When we went out later, girl no. 1 was on the phone so I placed the key card on the reception desk.

The next morning, we checked out. Girl no. 2 said we have to pay for 3 rooms. Why? Apparently I did not ‘check out’ of the other room yesterday. I said I did and she said it was not registered on her pc. Like hell I care about their computer system. They tried to get clarification from girl no. 1but she couldn’t be reached. Sis and I argued with girl no. 2 and 3 for a good 30 minutes before they called their manager, whom was conveniently on leave. So a hotel can run without any supervision? Girl no. 2 poh peh-ed with manager and told us we still had to pay for 3 rooms. If post their ‘investigation’ that I had indeed cancelled the 3rd room, they will bank in our extra money into our bank account. But how can you trust someone who can’t even get room bookings right to have your best interests in mind? Sis had paid RM250 deposit in advance via credit card so by hook or by crook, we have to get this right. I spoke to the manager over the phone and he was rude, unhelpful and unreasonable. We were both so hot-headed so we didn’t hear each other out. I suggested to him that why don’t he give me the hotel’s bank account number so I can bank in the balance? We didn’t trust him just as he didn’t trust us. He also refused to give us a black and white. The fact that girl no. 2 checked my former room and found everything clean, intact and untouched is not a 'proof' that I did not spend the night there. FFS.

We did not reach a truce and we suggested one of his girls make a report at the polic station with us. He refused but he said he can’t stop us from doing so. In the end, sis called the police to come over so we can settle this or at least get a black and white on the account banking arrangement.

The cops came, spoke to the manager on the phone and advised him to get his fat ass here to talk to us in person. Mr Manager refused, saying he’s in Kampar. So what? Kampar to Ipoh is like driving from PJ to KL. Big black , hairy deal. He instructed the girls not to give their statement and the cops said they can’t do anything because this is not a crime or police matter. He advised us to settle this with the hotel proprietor. We said we would, if only he show up with his ugly mug.

In the end, we did not make a report, since the cops said they don’t wanna be involved. I got back my change. Sis cancelled her credit deposit and paid RM89 in cash and we left. The whole circus took about an hour to finish performing.

The day after our departure, girl no.1 called and insist she did not speak to me about my cancellation. Sure, but who did I speak to? The headless horseman? Scooby Doo? She said “Kita tak boleh tuduh antara satu sama lain so kita bereskan bil ini dengan night syif kita.” Whatever that means, coz I told her I will not pay for something I did not ask for. She aint getting no sympathy points from me. Not her or her malau manager.