These Boots Are Made For Combat

I received this combat boots from my uncle who was in the Territorial Army (Askar Wataniah). Since he was discharge, he does not use it anymore. I also received a pair of parade boots, with iron soles (paku).

The size fits my feet perfectly. Comfortable if you are going to stand guard for a few hours, the reason I wore it while being a guide during my school's entrance day. Needless to say, long socks are necessary lest your legs are going to get sore. Due to my big feet, which is 10 inches, my ankles also get the brunt of moving around. I always keep it polished, Army issue are hard to come by!

I don't know when will I wear the parade boots. Due to the metal soles, walking on cement and concrete is very, very hard. I had a few close calls the day I first wore them. The sides are hard too, and it's longer than the combat boots. But if you are going to march in a parade, this boots are a must. Nothing beats the rhythm of metal-soled boots striking the asphalt together.

If you ever see a man in black jeans, black shirt, black cap and black boots running around Kuching, the chances are it is me.

And often mistaken for a skinhead.

Death All Around

Waking up this morning, I heard from my mother that a former neighbour had passed away from leukimia. She's just 50 something, if I recall correctly.

Reading the newspapers, one survivor found, two dead and one still missing. Mother said that she heard on TV3's Berita Terkini that the missing person, Ramli Jamal, is confirmed dead.

Reading the blogs, I found out that Grace's grandfather passed away on the 25th.

My condelences to all.

Utusan and NST's Mistake on the Crash

Yesterday, NST's frontpage placed two circles on the picture of the crash site - indicating that there are two survivors. But no. There is only one, as other newspapers circled the same picture - only with one circle. What I am afraid is that NST raised false hopes, and it seems so. (Anyone have yesterday's copy? I would like a scan of the frontpage)

Today, Utusan Malaysia's graphic on Page 12 placed the helicopter 500 meters above the ground, in the rainforest canopy. It doesn't take long to realise that banana trees doesn't grow in the canopy, only on the ground.


Commissioner of Police Dato Talib Jamal pointing to the crash site at a journalists' briefing (Source: Sarawak Tribune)


Close-up on the drawing board - X marks the crash site (Source: Sarawak Tribune)


A more accurate graphic on the crash site (Source: Utusan Sarawak)


Utusan Malaysia erred on this graphic.

I hope that NST and Utusan will make a proper announcement regarding the mistake.

A Dream About the Crashed Helicopter (II)

Whoa. Is it a coincidence that I dreamed about the survivors? Cries of help heard from the crash site and a man in blue was seen waving to the Search-and-Rescue helicopter. I hope that all survived.

In my dream, I saw the helicopter perched on a rock with men in orange clothing surrounding it. While this does not materialise well, the crash site is situated on a harsh terrain - beyond a hill, where it is more easier to climb from the Indonesian side.

A friend of my friend's sister, her father is the pilot.

My Dream

A Dream About the Crashed Helicopter

Yesterday, I dreamt.

Two mens are waving from a helicopter that is lying on its side and has a broken tail. The scene switched to a group of men in orange clothing gathering around the chopper which was now perched on a rock.

That is all.

One Thing to Do After STPM

"Someone told me long ago there’s a calm before the storm,
I know; it’s been comin’ for some time.
When it’s over, so they say, it’ll rain a sunny day,
I know; shinin’ down like water

I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?
I want to know, have you ever seen the rain
Comin’ down on a sunny day?

Yesterday, and days before, sun is cold and rain is hard,
I know; been that way for all my time.
’til forever, on it goes through the circle, fast and slow,
I know; it can’t stop, I wonder"
- Have You Ever Seen The Rain, Creedence Clearwater Revival

I'm thinking of growing a beard and keeping a long hair after STPM. Hippie or reggae, that's the main question. John Lennon, Bob Marley? Interesting question. Maybe I'll get a guitar and start singin' at the Waterfront, everyday, with a hat for collecting the money and loose changes. Eve of Destruction, Knockin' on Heaven's Door are some of the songs considered for playing.

Lately there have been something quite wrong with my heart. I'm having chest pains most of the day. Yesterday I decided to try to reduce my coffee intake (3 cups of Nescafe Rich 3-in-1, with the last two cups drunk in succession). So I started my day with tea, and for recess a bottle of mineral water. Just that the taste of the mineral water is very weird.

And to answer CCR's question, yes, I have seen the rain on a sunny day. Link here!

Attack of the Kelkatus

Last night, I heard tappings on the window. Accustomed to such things, and knowing that they are bugs, I ignored them. Until this morning, when dad showed me the photos he had taken.

They look like mysterious beings from outer space.

Or furries.

Or even flowers.

Eeeep!

This starts to look like the ROFL Waffles auction, but in this case the kelkatus is stealing the garbage bin!

Close up:

My favourite:



Not as bad as some years before, when the porch was covered with them! I had to wade through, so bad was the condition. The kelkatus usually come when the moon is full (read: high tide) and/or very heavy rainy days.

But Mother Nature is beautiful, ain't she?

Hush Little Baby

Sleep, little baby, don't say a word
Papa is gone to Sunday Market

If he came back without a shilling
He's gonna buy me a diamond ring

Huh? Am I Ok?

For the past few days, I had a strange sensation in my chest. Today I feel cold in the area around my left chest, near the heart. I wonder why - maybe it is the chain of events that have been moving so fast lately, that I have a hard time catching up.

Everyday I walked around 400 meters from the school gates to the bottom of the hill where my mother will pick me up. No problems, except that you have to walk 150 meters (in distance, not height) uphill, then walking down will be quite a breeze if not for the crazily driven vehicles that threaten to turn me into pancakes. There are dogs, but they are hardly a problem - they consider me as a friend.

I know I shouldn't complain about walking. Others have it harder than me. My mother used to walk two kilometers from the bus stop to her house up on a hill. And the journey from the school to the house took about two hours, so it's dark by the time she reached home. She left home early too, around 5 am.

My daily scheduele are as follows:
0545 - Wake up, do everything that you do every morning.
0620 - Breakfast.
0630 - Leave for school. If my sister woke up late, it will be 0640. Damn.
0640 - Arrival. 0650 if sister woke up late.
0710 - Class starts (offically)
0715/0720 - Class starts (unofficially)
1400 - Class ends (unofficially)
1410 - Class ends (officially)

And people in other schools went back at 1240. What the hell?

MUET Results Online (Mid-year 2005)

Looking at my stats, I found out that most people who came across my blog from search engines are searching for MUET results. Well, here's a link!

MUET Results (Mid-year 2005)

The Fourth Meeting

Recess time. I spotted the matchmaker and her friend going to the library. Since I had finished eating and drinking I was on their heels in seconds. Distracting her friend was done easily; she had something to do - because I reminded her - and left. I approached the rack where the matchmaker is, it's quite hidden from view and spying ears.

"Hello," I said to the her. "I would like an update regarding Miss G."

She was startled for a moment. "Very well. This might be considered as a good news for you. About her having being attached, well, I found out that he is just a friend."

I heaved a sigh of relief in my mind, as I usually restrain myself from sighing. We chatted, no, more like discussing various issues regarding relationship. The matchmaker enquired about the status of a friend of mine, I answered that his status is very much in the dark. Direct and subtle enquiries does not work as he often gives vague answers.

The next line took me by suprise (but I don't show it to her, just raised my eyebrows like Vulcans and Teal'c do).

"I like someone in my class," the matchmaker said. "He likes me too, but we both have trouble expressing our feelings."

Ah-ha.

I made three guesses, the first and second one didn't nail it but the third hit it - right on the spot. When I described him (as his name escaped me at that time), she is visibly flustered.

I will do my best to help you, Miss Matchmaker, after what you have done for me.

Mid-Year MUET Results Are Out

Being the stalker I am, I checked it one hour before everyone else got theirs'. Bashing the keyboard, I kept getting error messages. I wondered why. To my suprise, the MPM insisted on dashes ( - ) inside the identity card box. This is the first time that I have encountered a dialog box requiring you to put in your dashes! Not even university application form have that!


Getting band 6: alright, I've done it. But it won't help if I screw up on my STPM. Heard that the higher your MUET scores are, the harder your English classes in Uni will be. But that's just rumours, ain't it? So have to work hard, starting three months before this!

Background Music: Queen's We Are the Champions

P/S: Also the only one in school to get 6... *kembang*

MUET Results Mid-year 2005

Cat: Killed; and Curiosity

It was Friday. Shot from a moving car, therefore I apologise for the blurry and reflective picture.

Being Mr. Natural

This will be the third time that I have become Mr. Natural. As you can see from my posts, things had been moving very fast for the past few days. Well, I got to know that she is already attached.

Often we hear of 'there are a lot more girls out there'. True, true. But not getting any after three tries is a let down. My honour demands -- and I accept -- that should a girl already have a boy, then all attempts are to stop at once.

And so passes another chapter of my life. Excuse me for a while because I need to be depressed for a few hours, then happy a couple more, then depressed again, then loony...

Bee Gees - Mr. Natural

Clearing the Cloud

Weeks ago, I spill the beans to my friend. 'The beans' being me liking Miss G (you can find stories of her if you are patient enough to dig into this blog). She being the matchmaker that she is, offered to dig up Miss G's number. I said, "Whatever suits you."

Today she SMSed me to call her back. I wasted productively used 0.15 Euroes calling her on Skype, because the charge from Celcom to Maxis is quite huge in total.

My apologies for being unclear. It was the matchmaker who SMSed, it was the matchmaker whom I called.

Hope I'll dream of her tonight...and no Nadz, the story is still in progress ;)

A lucky star/I Got Her Number

A lucky star.

Weeks ago, I spill the beans to my friend. 'The beans' being me liking Miss G (you can find stories of her if you are patient enough to dig into this blog). She being the matchmaker that she is, offered to dig up Miss G's number. I said, "Whatever suits you."

Today she SMSed me to call her back. I wasted productively used 0.15 Euroes calling her on Skype, because the charge from Celcom to Maxis is quite huge in total.

Now what?

Love Comrades

It is, perhaps, one of the strange relationships that I had encountered. Feels as if you are watching Onegai Twins, where the two girls forge alliance with each other to gain the love of the boy. But let me tell you my story.

In the year 2003, yours truly is in Form 5. A friend of mine, lets call him Mr. O, who was my classmate the year before is a frequent visitor to our class and my home (no, no hanky panky here). Through this visits I came to know that he is interested in Miss L, a girl whom I have set my eyes on during 2001.

Instead of an all-out rivalry between the two of us, we became love comrades instead. Sharing information is but a few things that we do, including tapping the other on the shoulder should Miss L pass by. Alas, Mr. O's interest in Miss L quickly waned and he changed targets to two new girls: Miss C and Miss R. Again the pattern emerged. Both of us are interested in the two girls, but we are not enemies.

Mr. P, who is a classmate of mine and also an anime fanatic is my love comrade. Also in the year 2003, I've noticed a girl. Quite different from others, I must say. I asked Mr. P's opinion and he agreed with me. An ad hoc survey was conducted randomly, and most of the respondents agree that she is --beautiful. The Girl.

But things don't quite last. Mr. P went to Labuan for matriculation, while I took a six-month hiatus before re-entering the school.

At present, Mr. O is attached, Miss R finished her matriculation, Miss C will be sitting for her STPM this year and Mr. P has not got any offers from universities. As for Miss L, the last I heard of her is that she is studying some place 20 kilometers away from my present school.

And I'm still trying to win the Girl's heart.

Smoke on the Road

Syed Hamid Albar: Contact Wisma Putra for Enquiries

(Through My News Network) : The Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises Malaysians who have relatives and/or friends living in London to contact Wisma Putra for enquiries through the following:

03-8887 4000 (Office Hours)
03-8887 4570/8889 2746 (After Hours)

Malaysian bloggers in London:
Mark
Jon Choo
Jay

Tony Blair to Make Statement at 1200 GMT (1900 Malaysian time)

Britain Prime Minister Tony Blair will make a statement regarding the explosions at 1900, Malaysian time. If you have Astro then watch BBC for the statement.

The fastest source(s) for news are here:
Wikipedia
Wikinews

Faster than you can say 'London'.

Why I Went to Johor

*You saw someone polishing a trophy with soft cloth. After finishing, he switched the camera on and started taking pictures. Noticing you, he said... *

Hullo. You might be asking why I was absent for four days beginning Friday last week. Here are the reasons:






There are two sub-catogeries for Home Library - Village and Housing. Mine's housing, which have ten participants from all over the country.

He he he...

Ten Things to Do While Watching Buletin Utama

• Try guessing which Malaysian Idol ad they will play today.
• Hum Buletin Utama's World News background music.
• Record the 'susu vs. roti' ad.
• And sing along with it, live.
• Guessing which state have a tragic accident.
  
• Taking bets who will read today's news.
• Attempting to figure out whether it's the younger brother or the elder brother who will be reading the sports news.
• Listing the sponsors.
• Try making an instant noodle in record time, during the commercial.

And the most loved...

• Count how many times Karam Singh Walia raised his left arm.
  

London's Hosting XXX Olympics

Just heard it on Lite and Easy. Anyone have the idea on the number of votes for and against?

Edit: My apologies, it is the XXXth. Too much ear wax.

2210

I'm back from Johore.

Unique visits to this blog hits 2000.

Teachers are changing, again, four months from the exam. This will undoubtly wreck some stuff up.

I'm tired and I'm feeling shitty. At the moment the future looks bleak.

My mind is not clear. My thoughts are muddled up.

Leaning towards insanity. Can't blog for a while.

See ya.