Pulau Payar (Payar Island)

An unforgettable trip to Pulau Payar (Payar Island) Marine Park. The island is surrounded by well—protected coral reefs with abundant and colourful tropical marine life, it is one of the most beautiful and exotic marine parks in Malaysia.

The air cond ferry took us almost 2 hours from Penang Swettenham pier to reach Pulau Payar.

During my trip, I miss this picture, have to download from net, this was the huge Reef Platform that hosts the tourists, where the snorkelling & diving activities were carried out here. In front is the glass bottom boat

On the reef platform, all the snorkeling equipments were provided.

Fins & life jacket as well

Person in charge briefing on the day itinerary.

Look at those friendly fishes… can’t wait to jump in

Get ready now

Here we go swimming with the Nemo & Dori

On the other hand, the dive master was giving introduction to the new divers, looks at the oxygen tanks, those were heavy stuff, I shall fall behind if it piggy rides on my back.

This is the entry to meet Mermaid

This picture was taken in the underwater chamber, with the diving gears on, nobody can tell who you are, and you can actually tell your friends that this is you diving

A ‘so so’ Buffet lunch was provided on the Platform, and rides on the glass bottom boat was not as fun as snorkeling.

I shall return to Pulau Payar, not for the photos taking, but to enjoy snorkeling throughout.

Blackie Orange

Please meet Blackie the rooster.

Blackie & Orange the hen

Blackie crowing now and then
Orange sand bathing

Where ? In the flower pot

Dates to Remember :(

In our life, there have a lot of dates that we are forced to remember, no matter you like it or not. When you are young, you need to remember

1. Your own birthday
2. Parents birthday x 2
3. Sibling birthday x 2 (if you have 2 siblings)

When you grow up and in relationship, you need to add in

4. your lover’s birthday x 1
5. Valentine day x 1

When you got married, you ought to extend your list to include

6. Wedding anniversary x 1
7. Your parents in law birthday x 2
8. Your children birthday x 2 (if you have 2 kids)

The list has not come to end yet, some forgetful person that can’t remember their own parents’ birthday created Mother’s day and Father’s day for the world to celebrate, these two dates have been commercialized by the public, places like hotel, restaurant, souvenir shop, bakery shop, radio & TV broadcast have big time promotion, no way for you to pretend forgetful.

9. Mother’s day x 2
10. Father’s day x 2

Haha… based on the above, assume that you have 2 siblings, 2 children, parents & parents in law, the total celebration per year is 16 days, meaning that you need to prepare 16 gifts / treats for your beloved. Hmmmm…. That excludes Christmas gift or festive gift, well, well, beside wallet bleeds, your head will crack searching for gift and remembering it.

My very own FarmVille

Come n view my chilli 'farming', see the little bud

The Flower grow facing down

See the baby Chilli

Wao.... Red and perhap spicy

Oops... a bit over ride

sigh... withered harvest

Should work harder in Facebook FarmVille before the actual hand on.

Lost & Found

My hair stand up went I found things missing from my home, my blood pressure shoot up causing my hair curl and burnt when my kids said, “I don’t know, I never use.” I feel like juicing them and drink, or stuff them back into my stomach where their hometown was.

Obviously all these items do not have wings that make flying possible, neither do my kids have the ability to ‘David Copperfield’ it.

Giving up the idea of confronting the kids debating who took it, I ended up replacing all the missing items, storing them in highly confidential places where the kids shall have no clue to find the location. Can you imagine that I am turning my dressing table into tool table keeping screw drivers, test pen, measurement tape, meter, cellophane tapes, scissors, screwdriver, Uhu glue, etc. I ever think of getting a big safe box to keep things, especially scissors & nail clippers.

There was that ONE day, the sun rises from the North, the lightning strike on my head, which brought me the courage to do room cleaning for my kids, the scene wrecked by typhoon Ketsana and Tsunami, I am like the rescuer salvaging the property from the rubbles. My eyes blink blink, as I discovered my long lost nail clippers, my camera, my card reader, scissors, screwdriver, face cleanser, canister and more more... I am more joyful than slimming 5 kgs weight.

My kids earned themselves long winded nagging for at least 3 weeks.

In the mind of kid

My little Lu complaint that he only see white wall whenever he wakes in the morning. (I kind of feeling guilty, as I leave to work before he open his eyes)

With a piece of paper and a pen, he said he is going to put up something nice on the wall.

On the next morning, I found the piece of paper sticking on the wall

It merely had these 4 big words - "Play Yo-Yo Now"

T for Terry

Please meet my pet Terry (Terrapin - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrapin), 15 years ago, Terry was as small as 50 cents (1.5"diameter) now, and it has grown up to almost 1 foot long. Terry eats vegetable, shrimps and small fish.

One fine morning, my son Litter V walked Terry out for a stroll in the garden, little brain got short memory, and Terry never been seen again.

3 months later, we found Terry buried himself in the ground with only his head partially exposed, attracting us by making pssi..pssi…pssi sound. Overcome with joy, we bath Terry and found him smaller in size. Never ever Terry was invited for a stroll anymore.

In Feng Shui, tortoise & turtle symbolise longevity, stability, strength, support and endurance. We place Terry in North corner as an enhancer for career, with the hope that it attracts a smooth, grounding energy for business projects and promotions in career.

Boring All Girls' School

Brought up in single-sex school can be of different experience all together. Amongst girls, we were more carefree, we don’t need to behave and pretend like angel, we are what we are - no faking, original & beautiful. In class, we didn’t mind if anyone of us picking noise collecting gold, popping or squeezing pimples, plucking eyebrows, cleaning ears wax, ventilate feet by removed shoes or resting both feet in the desk drawer, in addition, lifting up pinafore skirt, slipped hand in and adjusted our inner white blouse were common scene.

All girls’ school came with strict discipline rules, short hair, kneel length 'A' shape skirts, short nails, and NO NO for all accessories like hair pins, hair band, earring and fancy spectacles. We all looked pretty much the same, confused teacher by calling us the wrong name, and due to the square and stone look, no guys would give us a second look, and we missed all the romantic relationship, thus making our parents the less worry parents on earth.

Since our exposures to guys were limited, we choose alternative – pen pal. (Readers, those days computer & handphone still in the mid of invention) Those days, the greatest person we look forward was Mr Postman, delivering our pen pals letters, with beautiful & scented writing pad, nice and neat handwriting gain the immediate attention, letters circulated in the class for reading, all girls chip in to draft the reply letters. Being innovative, some of us created fun by using toilet roll for writing letter, and in return we got Hell Bank Notes attached with a nasty letter. Keeping too many pen pals can be costly, we recycle our stamps by spreading thick glue on the surface, and the recipient would easily wash away the stamping ink for reused.

Those girls exposed to disco party, and occasionally fetch by boy friend became the central attention, she was the talk in the school, emerging her ‘grade’ higher than us. We were like ‘katak’ (frog) looking up from the well.

Spending years of school days, looking and seeing the same sex was very boring, and I presume our school should had contributed majority of spinsters’ population in the country.

Our ‘Can Think’ Cafeteria - Final

Continue from previous post....

For cost saving, some cranky ideas floated up, hiding the fish and chicken under the vegetable or rice, group 2 types of vegetables in one tray compartment, press and compact the dish, confuse the casher by piling up all dishes and rice into one big mountain heap, show Hollywood acting like poor & miserable and finally choose the ‘kind hearted’ casher that charges less.

After paying, we choose a nice cooling place to feed our stomach, here is the time where we can officially & openly talk face to face, in the office, we chat online or thru intercom.

We break-fast by asking how much is the food? Comparison on price and sizes, we were 10 times more ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ bargaining and calculative over every penny spent. Or was it a sense of victory for having to pay less?

Dining at the long McDonald-like table, seated closely facing each other. At times, the chicken drumstick or wing shall work on their kung-fu kick by flying to the opposite food tray. Fish bone remover by mouth is a no no, caused there is no bull eye for splitting and it would landed on neighbour hand or tray.

There was once, we brought our customer to dine in our cafeteria, we used to keep bones and other food residue in ‘our’ empty compartment instead of leaving & dirty it on the table, the customer observed and did the same thing - not in his tray but in our tray.

After meal, we need to clear our own tray by separating the utensil, food residue, glass and bowl, good practise just like schooling.

Our ‘Can Think’ Cafeteria

For lunch break, we are given 30 min Road Runner speed, walk to cafeteria, queue, pick up tray & cutlery, scoop dishes, pay, eat and back to office. Bip ! Bip !

Our cafeteria is equipped with air conditional, 2 food counters on left and right side each, >10 serving of food on each counter, array of chicken, fish, vegetable, egg, balls…oops, think straight, it is fish ball, meat ball and squid ball, free soup, free herbal drink to deter H1N1, hot & cold drinks, fruit juice, breads, cakes, biscuit, titbits & a special counter offering hawker delight. Dear readers, envy?

There will be no bell ringing to inform on break, each and every one of us knows our staggered schedule. Fussy diners acted more like QC inspectors at work, flipping tray by tray choosing the perfect piece base on the criteria of dry, clean, flat and dent free. (same method applies to choosing partner, divorce rate shall be reduced)

The hungry & hollow one would pile up their food like pyramid, the picky chooser causing the queue crawling, making the next waiting person hair pulling. The traffic flow in one way, but some make it u turn back, ‘Bang!’ trays accident, leaving the casualties dead on the floor (dear chicken & fish, RIP).

The caterer uncle is mending the casher machine, pretty women who call him ‘Ah Ko’ (Brother) will get a few cents waived. Ah Ko mental arithmetic never fail, but in front of ‘leng lui’ (pretty women) with naughty yak will cause his brain temporally damage. I deserve the leng lui privilege…. if I am 10 years younger. (Smirking)

To Be Continued….

"All you can Eat" Buffet

Some said that we were tortured on an expensive and extensive food, wolfing down the meals like starving hyenas. And some said that was a greed feast where we were practiced on the extensive of greediness.

I agreed with the description given. Our 'Kia Su' attitude (afraid of losing) reveals the ugly side of ourselves. Piling up Himalaya Mountain on our plates, but only consumes the size of ant portion, discard the whole plate which is enormously sufficient to provide 30 days food for a famine child.

Next round, if you are planning for a buffet feast, please consider the following suggestion:-

1. Preliminary Tour - scouting around every section, plan and make the best choices. Do not just go and grab food blindly

2. Food Tasting – take minimal portion, teaspoon or bit size portion, and possibly try all the items
- Soup - take only a couple of tablespoons instead of full bowl
- Cut portions into small piece, nothing wrong to leave half portion for others
- Do not afraid to ask the food server for a tiny slice “just to taste it”

3. Enjoy your selected Food – finally, you have tasted everything, and you should be able to identify the food that you like most, you can now go for a little bigger portion and enjoy the great meal

4. Desert - Ditto and follow step 1 ~ 3

Hope all of us remember when returning to buffet table, get rid of the overeating and wastage habits.

Bon Appetite!!

Staying Awake in the Office

Getting bore and sleepy in the office, try the following.

1. Power Drinks – coffee, tea
2. Power nap – during lunch break or nap in the wash room
3. Power Pill – take B complex, gingko
4. Power snack – take frequent snack or titbit
5. Power refresher – splash water on face, or put on refreshing perfume
6. Power Puff – smoke a stick or two
7. Power walk – take small stroll in the office, or walk up & down the stairs
8. Power breath – hold breath as long as you can, repeat a few times
9. Power music – play some fast pace music
10. Power roll – roll tongue clockwise for 50 times
11. Power chat – talk and chat for a short while
12. Power view – put your boss photo on your work desk

I think the number 12 works better.

Women's Gossip

During our gathering, my female friend shared her parent in law's visit story.

She is a working mother with 2 kids, hired a stay in house helper to run the house chorus. Described that PIL's (Parent in law) visit had turn the smile upside down. Family members including the house helper were affected emotionally.

The quiet home since then become the central attraction of her neighbourhood, the disagreement between her father & mother in laws had caused tongue fight whenever they met, the house was small and both of them get to bum into each other walking 10 steps ahead. They quarrel regardless of places and time, day time, night time, 2 am, 3 am or even 4 am in the morning, in the room, in the hall, in the garden or at the road side.

My female friend said this was Karma, when her neighbour had fight or quarrel, she would pretend to sweep the front or to water the plant with extended ear aerial eager to know the happening, now that she hope to have a tortoise shell where she can hide in it whenever her PIL's heated up with quarrel. Her family secret had become a public secret, the neighbour got to know in out of everything.

There were always chicken and duck talk communication between the PIL and the house helper, she need to bridge up the link, acted as interpreter to ease the tension. Her MIL (mother in law) was super suspicious on the house helper task, she was afraid that they got to drink lizard’s tongues soup, fry cockroaches eggs rice and clothes wash with sewage water. MIL appeared like David Copperfield from nowhere, watching house helper like a hawk.

There are few more pages if I were to detail it down.

As friends, we can only pray for her to improve patient, understanding and extraordinary strength and wisdom to overcome all impossible odds.

Not Easy, Why Scare ?

My friend once told me that it is not easy to see ghost spirit, they believed that our brain wave and the ghost brain wave are of difference frequency, but if we tune into the same wave length, then, we will be able to see them, listed below are 5 types of people which can see the spirit easily.

1. Sick, ill or near death – upon my grandpa’s death, he asked who was the long hair lady in white gown near his bed side. Another uncle of mine said that he was happy that his mother & father (dead long time ago) come to visit him.


2. Cocaine Drug addict – get high and illusion occur


3. Mediumship, spiritualists, high ranking monk, Taoist priest


4. Mentally insanity, psycho person


5. Abnormal Suspicious – mental weak and over suspicious and fearful of ghost existence
   

Well, well, if you are none of the above mentioned, then you are not that lucky to see them.

Believe it or not ? It's up to You

My brother once told me that there were ghosts wonder around in school, play ground, hotel or any building that was empty at night. They believed that the spirit shall take over the places where human 'chi' was less.

As for hotel, we need to knock at the door before we enter, upon opening the door, we need to step aside, let that 'someone' walk out from the room first, this is the respect to them, later, we turn on all the lights, wide open the window and let the fresh air and sun shine in. Guarantee best night sleep.

Some believe that baby and toddler have the tendency or third eye of seeing the spirit, if you wish to buy new house, bring them along, if they are happily playing inside the house, then house is 'clean', if the baby is crying, you better on hold the house buying.

After memorial or funeral service, good to stop by temple and pray, but if you are non believer, alternatively drop by public places like supermarket, hypermarket where the 'yang' chi are rife and deter spirit from following you home.

If you do have eerie or spooky feeling at home, cleanse by sprinkle salt at every corner of your house, leave it overnight and sweep away in the next morning.

Believe it or not? It's up to you, if you know more, welcome to share with us.

Jewelry Storage Organizer

My dear ladies, getting too many accessories will be difficult for storage, especially the necklace, bangle bracelaces and earing. I used to tossed them into a box, and later I will found them entangled with some broken.

Getting jewelry organizer from the shelves is costly and the compartment space is limited, there are some DIY necklace organizer, if you have the time and interest on DIY. Just share some websites on how to make jewelry storage organizer.

1. Solving the Jewelry Storage Problem
2. DIY Jewelry Organizer for Neckleces
3. Jewelry Storage Idea
4. DIY project: jewelry shadowbox
5. Stylish Jewelry Storage

DIY Jewelry board, hangers, bowls & frame.

But if you are as lazy as me, then you go for this lazy way which shared by my good friend. I find it useful & effective, specially good for steel matel chain necklace, gold & silver plated necklace, where the color will be preserved without oxidized.

What you need is ‘Clear Zip Lock bags’ (similar to plastic bag used by pharmacy to keep tablets medicine), get it from the shop that sell plastic bags, get a few sizes that suit your jewelries. See the following easy peasy way

Insert accessories in the clear zip lock bags.

Keep accessories in a box, and it is easy for accessible and viewable. Isn't it good idea ?

Durian Trip

It was Durian season again, picking up durian was never my choice of past time, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, I was dragged to go despite me kneeing down begging with 101 reasons why I am not fit to go.

Can you imagine that far far away and deep deep in the plantation, with no human being around, some known or unknown animal watching you in the dark and no matter how you shout and scream for ‘fire!’ or ‘Robber!’ there will be no one comes to your help.

We reached at the early dawn, ahead of the intruders schedule (intruders come to steal durian), attired with long sleeves and long pants to prevent free blood donation to the mosquitoes.
Black was the words to describe the surrounding, only with dime light torch leads us the way, walking in the thick bushes will accidental step on and provoke the sound asleep living things, a stick was used to shoo and wake them up in much polite way.

Spotted and picking up durian can be quite enjoyable, but when the durian come with a pile of big red ants can be shocking, instant reaction is to drop it with lightning speed. I had forgotten to bring gloves where I need to bear with the prickle sharp pain cause by the spiky thorns.
Getting under the durian trees was dangerous, it is unpredictable as to when the durian going to fall. At times, we heard the sound of snap and breaking branches, and soon, with a 'boke' sound, durian fell a few feet away. Next round I will put on helmet protection.

At the end of the trip, we had our fingers wounded, mosquitoes’ sting and ants bite marks, and of cause fruitful harvest of durians pile up in the car, the unwanted unique odors makes us feel giddy in the car.

Garlic Bread & Mushroom Soup – ABC Preparation

My family members just love to have garlic bread dipped into mushroom soup, it is a ‘MUST’ eat dish in Pizza Hut and any Western Restaurant outlet.

My dear colleague Boon told me that I can actually get it DIY at home, cheap & economy, simple as ABC.

A. Garlic Spread (get in Giant, Carrefour, Tesco, next to Butter or Cheese corner)
B. A loaf of French Bread cut into slices
C. A can of mushroom soup

Spread the Garlic spread over the French Bread slice, put into Microwave Oven, use the 'Bake' feature, bake for 1 min or if you like it crispy go for 1 min 20 sec, alternatively can use electric Oven.

Empty mushroom soup, add in 200ml water and bring it to boil. Here you can enjoy your Ooh-la-la garlic bread dip in mushroom soup. Yummy.....

Just A Wish

At the age of 82, his vision gets blur, hearing gets worse, knees gets weak.

In lieu of the multiplying weaknesses, he was forced to scarify a lot of good things in his life. He gave up driving resulting inflexibility of getting around freely. He surrendered his responsibilities, he needless worry on marketing, household errant, bills, shopping and etc.

Besides, he had less accessibility to mend his own plantation, the place that he had worked for decades, money earned from the crops was to provide better shelter for the family, children education and now income for his retirement. He ought to trust his workers on the harvesting result & profit made. There were no way his children able to run the plantation business for him, as the kids had their own dream and business.

The only thing that he enjoys during boredom was to puff a few sticks to bring back the old memory that he vividly remember, but the whooping cough forces the doctor to put a stop on his medical report.

To get around, he needed 2 walking sticks to support his body, his knees are no longer able to support the body weight, and wheel chair was in used for longer journey.

He draws public attention where ever he had been, he just felt frustrated being looked on as handicap, he had a simple wish, a small wish to walk tall on his own without the 2 useless walking sticks. He once dreamt of his old buddy pushing bicycle, his buddy told him that bicycle replaced the walking sticks, this has triggered and sparkle his hope, he ‘summon’ his wife to assist and prevent him from falling while he do the pushing around in the house, it was not easy but he willing to give it a try. He just hopes that he can be able to manage it and who knows, he maybe able to ride on the bicycle when he get familiarise with the bicycle.

His wife burst his bubble dream by telling him that he will only able to ride on the bicycle in next life when he reborn again.