Gong Xi Fa Cai

Gong Xi Fa Cai!!!! Today is the first day of the lunar Calendar. This year will be the year were you can feel free to bark in KLCC, stick your tongue out in the public, scratch your ear in the LRT and lick your body... any where any time. No people will give you the WTF look if you do that in the public... yes yes... it is the year of the DOG... everyone is allowed to behave like dogs and bitches okieeeee!!!

I am now at the airport lounge awaiting for my flight to Phuket. Not sure what to expect yet but will definitely try to enjoy the sun, the sandy beaches and the gals in bikini...

The music prodigy

He exhibited musical abilities at an early age. By the age of 6, he was composing and performing in front of royalty and religious echelons. His works, written in almost every conceivable genre, combine luminous beauty of sound with classical grace and technical perfection. He is none other than Mozart, the prodigy everyone revered.

His full name is Johannes Chrisostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. phew.. that was long. He was born in January 27th, 1756. If you counted correctly, today marks his birth 250 ago.

To be frank, I don't enjoy classical music that much. That was one of the reasons why I stopped playing the piano and concentrated on playing the organ. Maybe I was too young, but I just couldn't relate to the grace, the elegance, the sophistication of classical music. I was so much into pop music that time. People like Paula Abdul, Debbie Gibson, Gun and Roses, Aerosmith, Gearge Michael, etc...

Everything changes when I had the opportunity to visit Austria when I was studying in the States. It seemed like a local thing to do at that time, without thinking much I bought ticket to embrace myself to the world of classical at this very nice place, Schonbrunn Palace. I can still remember, it was snowing outside the palace and me together with a bunch of kuai poh and kuai lou sitting inside the chamber listening to the musician playing the violin score after score. And the whole night, he was playing nothing but Mozart's brilliant works.

Not sure what happened that night though, maybe it was the snow, maybe it was the palace, maybe it was the kuai poh sitting besides me... that night, I was spellbound by Mozart’s music.

Nowadays, whenever I felt pressured at my workplace, you can see me listening to the Mozart. Anyway, Happy Brithday Mr. Mozart!

The Australian Open

The Australian Open is back. I love watching tennis on tv, I must say. Watching tennis game is exciting, watching tennis game is exhilarating, watching tennis game is thrilling.

The Australian Open was known as The Australian Tennis Championship when it was first held in 1905. The women's singles tournament was added in 1922 and the competition was renamed the Australian Championships in 1927. During the Open era, this event was again renamed to the Australian Open, in 1969.

Past men winners of the Australian Open include great tennis players like Stefan Edberg, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier and more recently Roger Federer and Marat Safin. I personally love seeing Federer plays. The way he plays is just breath taking... and I have no doubt or what so ever that he will win the Championship this year.

Past women winners of the Australian Open include wonderful players like Steffi Graf, Monica Sales, Christ Evert, Martina Navratilova and most recently Justine Henin-Hardenne and Serena Williams. In the women's games, I think it is rather an open championship. I can't think of any player that is so dominant last year that she can be tipped to win the championship. Having said that, however, I personally hope that Kim Clijsters will win the championship... although I love seeing Maria Sharapova plays... (for the obvious reason laaaa)

This year we also witness the comeback of the former number 1 player, Martina Hingis. I am not too thrilled about it so I really hope she loses in the early rounds. If you wonder why I say that, well, it is because I am a big big big fan of Steffi Graf. Hingis came to the scene and later claiming the top of the ranking during a time when Graf was nursing her injuries. I still very much doubt that Hingis could be number 1 in the world if Graf was still healthy and playing... Hingis is just happened to be at the right place at the right time if you ask me...

Final Home

They play their own instruments. They write their own songs. They produce their own albums. They can sing they can entertain... they are the 5 people band from Taiwan... They are Asia number 1 band... Mayday!!!

As a fan, I waited eagerly for the concert. I know their songs by heart... I memorize their songs by heart... I sing their song in the shower by heart... I listen to their songs while driving by heart... I even dreamt of the concert man... how to be not excited you tell me.

Come Saturday and I was excited. I wore the one of the two red shirts that I ever owned. This particular one has been hanging in the closet and accumulating about half a centimeter of dusk. By the way, red is the theme of the concert. At 2pm I left to pick up my pig fren dog fren. At around 4pm we reached the stadium. WTF... we saw all small kids wearing red queuing at the stadium front gates... This is embarrassing can... This is very very embarrassing can... Although I regard myself as a bright and promising young adult, I did feel damn old when around those secondary school ah beng and ah lian can...

Anyway, after a quick bite, we found ourselves soaking wet from the pouring rain while lining up at the gate. Suddenly Mozart seems to be a better alternative than I had to endure. I imagine wearing formal entire with a tie and hand holding a cocktail drink chatting with my date (who look like the taiwan model, ehm!!!) while waiting at a sumptuous hall completes with a 15th century chandelier hanging down from the ceiling...

The concert started at 8.30pm... forget about embarrassing... forget about old age... forget about the soaked jeans and shoes... forget the fact that the band was only 5 inches tall from where I was standing... I find myself singing and shouting the entire time, song after song. The concert lasted for 3 hours...

I must say, I did nothing but enjoyed myself... the energy was high and the atmosphere was high. I did felt like a 20 years old again...

The island in the South

After not seeing his sisters for more than a decade, my dad finally made the decision to visit them in Singapore over the long weekend. I thought it was a heartwarming decision I thought... and to show my parents how good of a son I am, I volunteered to be their chauffeur.

The island of the South has a total area of 692.7 sq km with population approximately 4,425,720. This island was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years later and became independent.

Over the past 40 years or so, this island has positioned itself to be one of the wealthiest countries in this region. It is a developed country and having the strength of economy that makes all its neighbor countries see red.

Despite all the good things you hear about Singapore, I am just not very keen about this country.

When think of this country, first thing that came to my mind was the arrogant people. Other subjective include kiasu, "as if", ah beng, ah lian, money oriented, selfish... (please don't sue me for this ok, I am merely practicing my right of freedom of speech).

For one thing, does the country have a culture that she could be proud of? Singlish? Kiasu culture? I think she is just another country which has been molded to resemble its counterparts in the west. So much so that it has lost most of its charm and charisma. Sad but is true. Furthermore, with all the rules and regulations being imposed into the daily life, do you get a clean place or a happy face?

Despite that, I still think that the government did a tremendous job in making her the jewel of the orient (this is me trying to suck up, just in case, if you know what I mean...), but for now, the island remains a holiday/visit location.

Hope I'll not slap my own mouth in the future...

p.s. The island has many pretty chicks... I was not a bit but very xin dong you know...

dilemma...

They say health is the most important asset that a person can have. We human however, have the tendency to be ignorant of our health, if you know what I mean... Very simply example, does smoking bad to your health? Ask any Tom, Dick and Harry and they will tell you yes. However, knowing the answer is one thing but doing it is another. Asking a person to quit smoking is like asking Jessica Simpson to differentiate between chicken and tuna, if you know what I mean...

Year 2005 is not a particular healthy year for me. I had at least one running nose 100m style every one month and running nose marathon style at least once every 3 months. How to enjoy life like this, you tell me. How to court the girls when you kept sneezing and your hand, your shirt's pocket and your Calvin Klein jeans’ pocket had nothing but tissues. So not appealing, so not cool, so not manly lor... if you know what I mean...

Determined to live a healthier life, determined to be more macho and determined to keep the nose crawling instead of running all over the place, visited a Chinese doctor I did before the end of 2005.

After paying RM90 for the consultancy, this is what I get..
1. Sleep at 9pm
2. Wake up at 6am
3. Stop eating meat
4. Stop eating seafood
5. Eat only veggie
6. Stop eating garlic, onion, celery and kai lan
7. Don't do excessive exercises, which include running
8. Stop drinking tea

Now, is it still worth living? Please tell me can....

New Year New Hope

A new year has begun and the calendar is reset...

This year I spent the New Year eve with my pig fren dog fren and together with the sms wishes of my friends from Penang, Perak, Kuching, Kuantan, KL, Selangor, China and US. It was sweet. It was warm. It was touching.

A new year has begun and instead of committing myself to resolutions I know I can't fulfill such as:
1. score 300 points in a bowling game
2. hike the Himalayas
3. go the gym daily and build a six-pack
4. have my photos publish in National Geographic
5. play Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D with my guitar

I am going to settle with the following resolutions:
1. to play at least 30 games of bowling
2. to travel to Jakarta and possibly visiting the Borobudur temples
3. go to the gym at least 4 times a month and hopefully I don’t look like a Michelin baby when I go naked
4. Build my own website and hopefully there will be enough people accidentally clicked on my website to make it to the top of the Google search for best photos
5. play any of the Mayday songs with my guitar

As you might see, it will be a very challenging year ahead of me. With little determination, I am sure I can achieve my goal with flying colors. Let's wait and see...

Happy New Year!!!!!