Morning Shocker.....

This morning I went to the GH to go through my blood test and ultrasound checking. So, I woke up early morning and got myself ready for the test. Knowing that the blood test lab opens at 7.00am, I was in the GH by 6.20am. At that time, no one was around and as I was about to plod my ass on the seat, a thin and scrawny looking late 30's Chinese woman immediately stuck her umbrella at the front entrance of the blood test lab and stationed herself at the front entrance. I immediately looked at her and found it amusing that she should be that kiasu and it was only about 6.25am. So, I told her to relax and take a seat as it was past mid-week and there would not be a lot of people in the morning. She just looked at me disgustingly as though I was a rapist convict who had just gained freedom climbing off the prison walls. She then took out two short nylon cream colored stockings, bend down and slipped them over her feet but all the while balancing herself so that she won't fall. Gosh! Can there be any other more weird people than this? Afterall, there was only me and her at the place at that time. In my head, I was already showing her the OTC ( Otak Tak Centre ) sign!!! By this time, another Malay man had arrived and he sat beside me and we greeted each other.

Then came this loud coughing Indian uncle who then parked himself behind the Chinese lady and pretended to ask what time will the blood test lab be opened when he was facing and freaking reading the plastic board that reads " BUKA - Isnin hingga Khamis  - 7.00 pagi hingga ......". Again, I just shook my head and see how ridiculous some people can get. He started coughing loudly and all the while, the Chinese lady was doing leg exercises as she was standing in line for freaking 20 minutes by now. Another old Chinese lady came and she immediately asked her accompanying son to stand behind the Indian man without even consideration that the Malay man and I had arrived so much earlier. Gosh! Again, I am really appalled by the kiasuness mentality. I guess, the Health Ministry of Malaysia should take heed and barred those Singaporeans from coming in to Malaysia as the Singaporeans had infected the Malaysian folks with this KKK1 disease ( Kiasi, Kiasu, Kiaboar One disease! ) . No vaccine had been found so far but the spreading of this disease is typically under the radar!!!!!

Anyway, as I saw the nurses for the blood test lab came in for work ( you know them when you are as regular as I was at this place! ) , I also stood up and took my place in line. I ushered the elderly Malay man to stand behind the young man as a mark of respect for the elderly though he insisted that I should go first as I had arrived earlier. I told him it was okay and that it is not that I am going to win a lucky prize for going through my blood test first, right? We both laughed and he complimented that I had a great sense of humour. We then went on to take our numbers and I was seated at the door as I got No.5 in line. 

Then I heard this loud coughing and some garnering of flam sound coming from this elderly Indian man. Lo and behold, he walked past me and then spew a mouthful of flam onto the cement flooring where I sat a couple of minutes earlier. For crying out loud, use the bloody bathroom or even the drains! This is the filthy habit and one that I detested a lot. I guess, it was an instaneous reaction from me when I exclaimed, " Come on! Use the bloody bathroom or at least the drains, uncle!!! Who the hell is gonna clean that up,man? It is the hospital, uncle". The elderly Indian man kinda looked menacingly at me and I stood up and not running away as we faced each other. I then heard some people telling him it was not right and more voices joined in. By then, the elderly man was embarrassed and he just wagged his finger at me and moved on as his number was called for his blood test. Even the nurses gave him a dirty look for what he did! Truly one uncivilized clown! I don't minced my words whether young or old when it comes to matters like this. I don't care if you think that just because you are old, you can get away with that type of behaviour, you better think again when it comes to me. Truly unhygienic, truly inconsiderate and truly disgusting habit! By then, the folks there at the lab that morning gave me the thumbs up for what I said. It was not their approval or accolades that I am after. It is a matter of hygiene la, people! Even the attending nurse who took my blood said that it was brave of me to say what I said. I told her that being elderly is not having a free ticket to bad habits. She looked at me and laughed and said, " Then I must remember to be gentle with you when I pricked you with the needle to draw blood." I answered, " You should, ma'am or you'll get scolding from me too!" Then she laughed and said to me " Be on your way and good day! ". I thanked her politely and went to the other side of the lab to the X-Ray Dept to get my ultrasound test appointment for the day and it is only 7.30am while my ultrasound appointment is 9.00am!!!!!! Hopefully nothing is wrong with my liver or any other important spare parts in my body as I still wanna enjoy my nasi lemak, roti canai, mee goreng and other goodies fare of the day!!!!!!

What a start to the day.....somehow, I hope my day will get better from here onwards..............

My Simple Tribute.....Bro.Kuna

There is definitely so much to talk about this man but suffice to say that many would have said all that I wanted to say. Bro Kuna was a man of great faith, happy-go-lucky, humorous yet strict and a man of very great standing. Never arrogant but always a humble man of choiced words or a hard thinking man. 

Speaking to him is like bringing joy in the conversation because ideas flow freely and unashamedly but always with great respect even in differing ideas. A man of wide knowledge while sharing ideas is always stimulating and exciting. A man who loves to read and share that knowledge, I have found this quiet and gentle giant to be forthright, straight speaking and profound messages to digest and digress.

Always a friend to the young and the old, Bro Kuna has touched lives beyond words and many are blessed by his simple ways. I know I have been touched by this man's hospitality, gentle friendship and his own caring ways. 

Riling him up whenever his favourite team MU loses will bring out the best reaction from him and it was nice to see him passionately supporting his favourite team MU for being a Gunner fan, the rivalry goes a long way. But a laughter, a smile and even a quick humorous quip is never far way from this man. Easy going, simple yet caring is how I would describe this man I've come to know him as a great friend though we live miles apart. There are so many lovely memories of Kuna and Cheng that would have filled the pages if noted down. Suffice to say that his generosity , his life and his friendship meant a lot to me.  

Even in his difficult times, he was there to greet me and the family when we came visiting eventhough it was difficult time for him.. His wealth of knowledge astounded me a lot as I speak fondly of this man.  

Even at his wake service, scores of former students, friends, church members, former colleagues and relatives came in huge numbers to pay their respect to this great man whom they have regarded as inspirational, humble and a gentle person. It just tells you how much this man was respected and looked up upon.

YES! There is a new Angel in heaven today.............................. his name is Kunasegaran Supiah. Rest In Peace, bro and till we meet again........

Wrath of Mother Nature....

Speedometer reading:- 1,099km - that was my travel statistics for the past one week during my work assignment in Temerloh, Kuantan, Mentakab and Kemaman. Looking back at the work at these flooded areas, I was really greatly moved by what I saw during my work assignments. However, I take heart seeing the brave, valiant and resilient men and women of Temerloh, Kuantan and Kemaman picking up the pieces of the lives and re-building it from scratch. All along the way and in the course of my work, I see lives restored and faith put in order while living becomes the order of the day. The tenacity to work together in cohesion and in our spirit of goodness helped healed lots of lives thought few incidences of the rearing of the ugly head of racism, nepotism and distasteful remarks do exist.

My work travels started from Melaka to Temerloh. It was a last minute change of plans that made me land up in Temerloh. Initially, my colleague and I was asked to go to Kuantan, which was to be our HQ for the next few days, but somehow, last minute changes in plans made up travel to Temerloh as much work awaited us there. All along the travel, I was worried of the Triang road to Temerloh which was rumoured to be unsafe at that time. A quick call to Temerloh Police Station and Triang Police Station eased my worries as the roads were said to be open to vehicles but caution was advised. So, I slowly threaded my way to Temerloh and along the way, I saw the utter disbelieved devastation left by the floods. Water level were about 8 -10 feet especially those along the river and at every left and right, all I could see was a titan coverings of light chocolate reddish coloured level markings at all buildings, houses, marsh grass lands and even the plains as one drives to Temerloh. The road was slippery, muddy and covered with at least 4-6 inches of mud silt and I had to maneuver the car carefully.

After much driving , finally I arrived in Temerloh and it was as bad as I had anticipated. Water and electricity supply had been restored but food and petrol stations were still down. Only some brave souls opened their shop to recover form the devastation. After checking into U Design Hotel, my colleague and I went straight to work. Being in a new place, it was so comforting to know that Waze application works! You can never imagine how wonderful this application works when you are in a flood hit area! With this in hand, I managed to locate my work site and carried out my work. I actually used Waze applications for all my work assignments and it was great. From here onwards, it was just work after work after work. As I travel to Kemaman to do my other work assignments, I was pleasantly surprised to see the reception I received from the people of Kemaman. They are truly fine and  good people while there are some rather hostile ones but generally, Kemaman folks are really friendly and spoke with one Terengganu slang indeed. After a while of listening to them, you get the hang of it and you will start to talk like them if you pick up speaking languages fast enough. I managed to work easily with the people and helping them out wherever I could but generally, I had to stick to the list and mandate given and ensured that I was fair when it comes to discussing the right compensation to them. I must honestly say that it wasn't all grim and depressing as you make the best of of any situations you are in , right? For me, I just made myself at "home" with the situation of my surroundings and make the best out of everything that comes my way. But I must admit that I wasn't able to sleep well, tired but I had great colleagues working alongside me. That made a lot of difference, actually. If you are working with a negative person or a whiner or a pompous little ass, your life at work will be miserable. But luckily, I just had the right working people and we were able to achieve a whole lot more and be of service to the Kemaman people.

With great colleagues in Sathiya, Harid and Tye, we managed to get some fun together despite our grim surroundings. We had some fun in our food hunting quest, drinks and even getting something to eat in Kemaman wet market. It was quite an experience for some of my colleagues who wasn't up to having food at markets and so on. Generally, they get the drift and enjoyed the meals. I particularly remembered the food we had under a pedestrian overhead bridge in Kemaman town. Surprisingly the food was quite good. The Siakap Goreng Tiga Rasa ( fried barramundi with sweet, sour and spicy sauce) , Puyuh goreng ( fried quail ) with long beans and onions, Tomyam kuning ayam kampung ( tomyam kampong chicken ) and Kai Lan with salted fish tasted exquisite despite sitting under a pedestrian overhead bridge. Quite classic , actually! I guess, I enjoyed my morning breakfast of nasi kuning with daging ( glutinuos yellow rice with special savory curry beef ) while Harid enjoyed the nasi dagang and Sathy enjoyed the fish curry puffs and some rounded fish kuih.

I was told by the locals that Pak Hassan Nasi Dagang stall wasn't open that day and his stall was the best. Just our luck then....

I guess, the tiring part was actually locating and waiting for the claimants to get to their homes and so on plus the travelling time from Kuantan-Kemaman and vice-versa. I must admit the negotiations with the claimants were rather pleasant with the exception of a few , of course. I must admit that the tendency to be greedy and arrogant are always prevalent but at the end of the day a fair compensation is what we would seek.I am so thankful and grateful for the Lord has enabled me in doing my negotiations without much problem. I guess, being honest with your own limitations and being honest with everyone is the beat way to go forward in such situations. I believe, I have been able to get the work done by the grace of God.

I also recalled some funny moments or rather "anxious" moments during my work there. There was once when I slipped and fell in a store which was not only smelly but filled with brackish drain water plus urine smell from the nearby monsoon drains. It wasn't a pretty site and sight for me. One of the workers had to wash me with the use of the high power water jet and causing half of my body to be dripping wet. Luckily, I had kept some spare clothes in my car booth and managed to get a change. Yeah, my bums and back hurt a bit but it did not hamper me from doing my work but it was one smelly experience indeed.  The other incident was the encounter with the slithery critters in one of the store I went into to do my work. The furniture in the store office had collapsed and there were loads of rubbish from the flood in the store. As I took my step in to the office store, I could hear hissing sounds; stopped dead in my tracks and froze for a moment. I saw two black menacing looking snakes at the collapsed table and I quickly took my foot off some rubbish and retreated very  very slowly. When I was safely out of the store,  I informed the owner of the situation and his workers killed the two snakes after flushing it out from their hideout. Like I said, it was His divine mercy that I am saved! What a relief!

One powerful lesson I learned from all these experience is that if you screw up Mother Nature big time, you would face the wrath of Mother Nature BIG TIME too. I guess, some greedy people ( including the government, politicians, government officials, local authorities, local leaders, powerful & greedy contractors and the general public ) just don't learn their lesson well enough or purposely refused to learn or too arrogant to learn their lesson. Messed up big time and be prepared to be messed up BIG TIME by good ol' Mother Nature! Be forewarned........

Travels...Kuala Gandah, Mentakab & KL......

Before ending the year of 2014, my family and I together with our family friends, Errol & his family decided to spent some days away from Melaka to our yearly end of the year adventure. For as long as I can remember, I am always fascinated with elephants and so, I decided to make plans to visit elephants at Kuala Gandah, Pahang and I sold this crazy idea to our family friend, Errol & Jessica knowing very well that it is raining season at this time of the year. There were hesitations at first in regards to accessibility to the area and even to Mentakab town. Many friends shared their concerns with me and asked me if I am crazy to wade through the flood waters to get to the elephant sanctuary. I have one friend who asked me if I am nuts and am I going there to be part of the flood relief team. I answered honestly that I am part of the flood victim team when I go there! I must admit that there are times I also questioned myself if I am in my sane mind as everyone is trying to get out from these places and I am going in to these places! Evidently, I am not in my sane mind but I'll do the trip because I truly believe in a bigger GOD, really. That was how desperate I was to get away and spend some time away with the family. 

Anyway, it was good that Errol got news from his sister-in-law that the road to Mentakab via Triang would be inaccessible due to the overflowing river banks. That leaves us the option of KL-Karak highway route to Lanchang and Kuala Gandah. I must say that no one in the team ever heard of Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary and most of the time when I explained to people that I am going to Kuala Gandah, the obvious squint in the eye reaction is " Kuala what?" Well, we made our way amidst the early morning rain which is not comforting at all and it rained all the way along our destination right to the elephant sanctuary. It was an arduous 41/2 hours drive as we stopped for breakfast and putting out fires in the toilets along the way. Though it was raining all the way but it was pleasantly smooth drive to Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary. 

The sanctuary was very well-kept, clean while we enjoyed every moment of feeding the elephants with sugar cane sticks while having one eye on the every rising waters from the nearby river. I noted with a tinge of disappointment that chalets and brick buildings are being built in the sanctuary spoiling the natural look of the sanctuary but like they say, progress is imminent especially with the lure of the ringgits insignia! I guess, everything gives way to the way of the ringgits as time goes by. I am just glad that I am at the sanctuary when it is still free entrance! The elephants are coarse and thick-skinned. Their trunks are powerful and their roar can be ear-splitting indeed. As we fed the elephants with sugar cane sticks, they are the gentle giants indeed and I was told that these are the younger ones. The bigger and taller ones are kept at the upper enclosures located on top of the nearby hill. I didn't mind the rain and the smell as it is once in a lifetime experience as far as I am concerned. The it is off to Mentakab to get a glimpse of our accommodation for the day. Along the way, we passed some very small towns which impressed me a lot as I am still very much a " kampong boy " at heart.

The thatched roofing of wooden houses and partially brick houses made the travelling such a fun thing. I have always enjoyed nice, eclectic, rustic look kampong houses and also the natural surrounding. It was fun and when we actually arrived in Mentakab town, we headed to our accommodation, EV Hotel and plopped our tired bodies on the comfortable Dreamland bed, man! We asked around for the happening places of interest and the poor receptionist girl had to endure our drilling on places of interest which is none and the only thing she could offer to us was Starmall Mentakab! The most happening shopping centre in Mentakab. This is the place where we watched the movie, " Night Museum 3" and continue with the last LOTR trilogy " The Hobbit". It was a marathon of movies for us to "kill" time in Mentakab,man. Truly one experience that will be long remembered! 

The following morning after breakfast, we were off to Kuala Gandah for Deerland. By this time, we were told that flood water had indeed rose further and this caused some concern for us but we really wanted to enjoy our holidays. As we were early for Deerland, we decided to catch some drinks and food at the nearby road junction. The beef rendang and sambal ikan bilis tasted good with our Gardenia bread as the proprietor was out of nasi lemak, mee goreng and bee hoon goreng that day. As we made our way in Deerland, we had fun feeding the younger deers with cuts of sweet potatoes. The weather was excellent but certain portion of the Deerland was under some water. We had to avoid the snakes enclosure as they were under water while the raccoon was a rascal indeed. I guess, the greatest fun for me was holding the small cute but thorny hedgehogs. 

They are like overgrown computer mouse when you put them in your hands but they are thorny...really thorny indeed. There were peacocks, birds of different species, pheasants and even rabbits every where in the Deerland. They are in the special enclosure and they are truly beautiful. Before ending our trip, one of the workers asked us if we would like to handle a python snake. SLing was the very first to bolt to the main exit and stayed there while the rest of us contemplated whether we should do it or not. Before I could say anything, I had a heavy but shinning cold slithering Burmese python around my shoulders. Boy , they are heavy, shinning ,cold and very very muscular. The handler taught us how to handle the snake gently and allow it to move the way it is. 

He then left us for a while as I handled the snake delicately though I was feeling squeamish and queasy a bit from handling the python. Out of the blue, the handler then whipped out a humongous looking Albino Burmese python and propped it to the shoulders of Josephine. That is one huge, heavy and real big piece of pure muscle. It took four of them to steady the docile and rather "tame" snake. To me, that is pure muscle every where and it is just so huge. We took photographs and then left Deerland with loads of memories of nature and fun. 

We were then on our way to KL for our next destination and we were again determined to enjoy ourselves and we did. Firstly , we turned gluttons for Hutong's Hokkien mee and then we filled our bellies with Outback Restaurant's finger licking and gob-smacking succulent ribs, chicken fillets, Typhoon burger and No Holds Barred burgers. What a feast lar....... 

The following day, we were off to the National Museum whereby the China's Summer Palace Exhibition was on together with Weapons of the World Exhibition nearby. It was indeed nostalgic as SLing and I used to date here many many years ago and how much the place had changed. I must admit that museums fascinates me a lot and I looked at everything in detail and in fascination. It is unbelievably a good place to bring you children for a lesson of history. BTW, should you want to know, the entrance fee to the museum is RM 2.00 ( Two ringgit ! ). Believe me, it is worth every sen indeed. As for the "Weapons of the World Exhibition", I paid RM 5.00 for the entrance fee and I am impressed, thrilled and fascinated by the array of weaponeries exhibited. It is truly exciting and so thrilled to see how these weapons are formed and made. Later, we went to the "Ethnicology Museum"and "Orang Asli Museum" nearby to further fascinate our already jammed packed with knowledge heads! Truly fascinating and NOPE! Those figurines in the museum doesn't come alive at night,okay? 

To end our trip to KL, we proceeded to the National Monument ( Tugu Kebangsaan ) at Jalan Parlimen. I know, this is a regular school children "must-see and must -do" program , we just wanted to get that patriotism feeling once again. Visiting the National Monument gives you that sense of pride that you are proud to be a Malaysian and there are people out there who will die so that you can enjoy that peace, safe and tranquil feeling. I could never help but feel "indebted" to the fallen heroes who had fought for the freedom of this country. It is the most meaningful bronze art structure ever - the majestic feel, the artistic taste of art and the pregnant meaning of freedom were captured that day. 

For once, I became a small child again going on for a field trip to KL. As I looked around me, I saw busloads of tourists taking pictures of the monument and these people don't know the first thing of what this monument really meant to us as to them it is just another tourist attraction. It is just sad sometimes that they posed, take pictures and never really read the carving of words nor knew the price of freedom. To me, the other monument caught my eyes. The one before the actual national monument. The very one that greets you as you walked towards the national monument. It is the monument whereby names of fallen had been engraved on the copper plates that adorned the pointed monument. An inspiring day indeed, as far as we were concerned. 

It was late when we arrived our respective homes that night but truly one good experience indeed. Thankful that we were protected, sheltered and safe during our trip and to the places we went. Thankful that we were not part of the statistics as flood victims. Thankful that we had wonderful experiences together as family and friends. Most important of all, thankful to GOD for He made it all happened for us.

As I looked back at year 2014, there are only two words that came to my mind and stick out evidently in my life - THANKFULNESS and BEING THANKFUL. Thank you , everyone for playing a part in building my life to where it is today. GOD is the very reason I live today but you people colored my life throughout the years of my life.....thank you...... 

Opinion...

Many had asked me why I have become "silent" during the last few days of 2014 and many were also asking why I have not written regularly over the months. I must admit that I have deferred writing anything because I was basically looking at myself and did a whole lot of thinking. I want to write what is from my heart even if it means hurting people, seems like making fun of others, questioning authorities or even making people feel sad. I want to write even when it hurts me or even as a lesson in life. I took time to examine if what I had written been honest, fair and truthful. I find the saddening truth that people by large are no more interested in truth, transparency and hard hitting facts.People are now generally accustomed to hearing " good and comforting " news rather than the pains as the people say that " life today is already hard enough, don't make it anymore depressing and difficult for us." Truth be told that many just wants "happy news", "more lies" and "more comforting news" rather than the truth.

Take the flood situation in Kelantan, Pahang and Terengganu. By God, people, this is a yearly event that happened to these three states. What is there a need for more study on why flood occurred? It has been 57 years already that these states had been coping with the floods and politics and politicking made it even worst. Real people are dying out there. Real people are losing their homes and their livelihood. Are we so blind to miss this year after year? Surely, something could have been done much earlier to prevent such catastrophe from happening, right? Is this another corrupted scheme in place and relief items could not reached these people? Why are plans not hatched earlier or preparation of storage of items be made earlier? Did not the relevant authorities in weather conditions gave out early warning or someone was just to dumb and deaf to take things seriously? Yeah! The top brass in these relevant departments should be given the sack or even be taken to task for their lackadaisical attitude and that is including our PM and His DPM as well! People's lives are at stake and these relevant departments screws it up year after year. I find it a joke that food items and relief for those trapped in their homes or areas could not reach the people. Well, try harder especially with the boat and the canoes or whatever. It warrants the armed forces to do their bit, the police to do their bot, Customs dept to do their bit ( they do have high speed boats and what not , right? )  and the Bomba dept to do their bit. Those millions spent on boats, high tech equipments and so on are spent in vain? Come on! Let me be unfair then to say that they should have done better and YES, I am pointing fingers at them for not doing enough for the people. 

If we can set up road blocks in a blink of an eye or have speed boats ready for "kerja-kerja pencegahan penyeludupan and what not " plus one thousand and one exercises "untuk kerja-kerja penyelamatan dan pencegahan" - why can't we move faster for search, rescue and relief works? The devastation is bad in these states. Is there no shame in the Govt. civil servants for not carrying out their duties as efficiently , clean and honest? Ladies and gentleman, tolong halalkan your gaji and serve the people honestly!! Of course , there are black sheeps in any dept from the top right to the bottom of the food chain of command but will the honest, righteous and compassionate people, please stand up and be counted in situations like these. I asked only one question to the PM, DPM, Ministers, Govt Dept Heads and so called expert advisors - What have you learned from the floods in Kota Tinggi, Segamat and Cameron Highlands? Have you learned nothing at all from these floods? Or millions just spent in vain by giving out "kerja-kerja mendalamkan sungai dan parit"? I tell you this - all these so-called natural disasters could have been averted and prevented in the first place had the lands not being raped by greedy developer and ever dirty prevailing hands of political influences and mother nature not altered and raped repeatedly of its natural resources! Yeah, the familiar line comes to my mind, this is "BOLEHLAND"! O God, How much we suffered because of these blundering clowns and the decisions they make.  

I am saddened by what had happened to the people in these three states. I had had the experienced of doing work and visiting such places of devastation by flood waters. It is an ugly sight, people. Believe me, the sight and the smell would make you remember it for a long time. People genuinely lose everything they have worked for over the years and the recovery takes time. It is disheartening to see people from all walks of life, color and creed losing their possession, their homes and even the fear of re-occurrence. The frustrations were shown in most places I worked at and I believe it will be much harder this time while the devastation and lost of confidence were evident.  My family and I together with our friends could only help with whatever we could contribute and offered prayers of love, compassion and good faith to these families. It is tragedy to me as the people in the govt of the day continue to ignore the pleas of the people and continue to plunder and rape the lands for all its worth and continuing to built more buildings and facilities without the slightest consideration for the well-being environment such as proper irrigation and proper flowing of waters to prevent such occurrences of flash flooding or even blockages.

Last night, I watched "Left Behind" movie which starred Nicholas Cage with my family. I wonder, how many politicians in our present Govt will be "left behind"? I believe many will be left behind. Hmmmnnnnnnnn......my, my, my, what an interesting thought! Go and get the DVD and watch the movie. Perhaps, it will jolt your mind and stir your heart a lot......afterall, we are ALL accountable to GOD ..... one day!